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Library of The Theological Seminary 


PRINCETON - NEW JERSEY 


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PRESENTED BY 
Louis Gottfried 


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THE SONS OF GOD 


The Mystical Interpretation of the Teachings 
of the Masters 


A Foreshadowing of the Coming Work 
of the 


MESSENGER OF THE NEW AGE 





By ka 
R. Swinburne Clymer 


(Authorized Edition) 


Published by 


The Philosophical Publishing Company 
Quakertown, ‘Pennsylvania 





Copyrighted 1925 ’ 
All Rights Reserved 


=. 





Foreword 


MONG America’s greatest teachers of the Mystic 
Philosophers, stood Dr. James R. Phelps of Boston. 
Not because of his attainment in the realm of letters 
or his knowledge of the dead languages nor yet be- 
Ser cause of his mastery of the Ancient Wisdom, do we 
gs \ {consider him great but for his absolute honesty, his 
sincerity and his ever readiness to lend the helping hand. 





In the letter which he invariably wrote to those who ap- 
pealed to him for instruction and training, he informed the 
aspirant thus: 

“My authority—and I dislike that word— 
goes back for years and was conferred by honored 
brothers [John Healy, P. B. Randolph and Free- 
man B. Dowd] now resting from their labors. For 
reasons of their own, when I affiliated with the 
Order [luminati—of which Count Giounotti 
[here he mentioned the Initiate names by which 
the Master 1s known] was the Hierophant—I 
doubted my ability to take any prominent position 
in its activities and they assigned to me the care 
of the back door, the charge of those who, fainting 
in the way, were giving up in despair. They 
called me ‘———————- ———————_’ or ‘the 
keeper of the Door.’ I found out in time that 
there is but one door to the Temple and that en- 
trance and exit are the same. Our Master said: 
‘I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he 
shall be saved [safe] and shall go im and go out 


SONS OF GOD 


an 





and shall find pasture.’ - 

“Now, my dear brother, divest yourself of 
any idea you may have that my position confers 
on me any superiority over you. That is the rock 
on which many a pseudo-teacher has gone to 
pieces. ‘Be not ye called Rabbi [a@ great man, 
teacher] for one is your Master [teacher] even 
Christ; and all ye are brethren.’ ”’ 

This will indicate more clearly than any words of mine, 
the genius of this great teacher. He would allow no man to 
call him ‘‘Master” though he looked for respect and demanded 
- it, as all men should. His students knew him as “teacher” or 
“ouide.” 

Such was the calibre of the man through whose instrumen- 
tality I was guided and from whom I received my training 
and instructions concerning the Sublime Mysteries and the Soul 
and its potentialities. 

Dr. Phelps has travelled to the Land Beyond the Veil and 
my one prayer is, not that he rest in peace but that his Soul 
travel forward and onward in the search for greater knowledge 
and a more thorough understanding of the Divine Plan. 

I base the interpretations here given on knowledge re- 
sulting from training covering a period of nearly eighteen years, 
much of it under men who claimed nothing for themselves 
except that they were humble laborers in the vineyard of the 
Creator, seeking no praise, asking only that such should be 
rendered to the one “Master,” even Christ. 

Brotherly Given, 
R. SWINBURNE CLYMER. 


Introductory 


REVILLE, one of the great French writers, sum- 
ming up the religious feeling of his day, said: 
“Always, in all human societies, at a certain 
period of their existence, a time comes when their 
‘religion begins to diverge from its fundamental 





\ |meaning, then diverges more and more, loses this 
fundamental meaning and finally crystallizes into permanently 
established forms. When it does so, its influence upon the life 
of men grows weaker and weaker as it becomes more of a form 
from which the life has departed. 

“At such periods, the educated minority, though no longer 
believing in the existing religious teachings, still pretend to 
believe, finding this religion necessary for holding masses in 
the established order of life; whilst the masses, although ad- 
hering by the force of inertia to the established religious forms, 
no longer are guided in their lives by religious demands but 
only by popular customs and laws. 

“So it has been many times in human communities. But 
what is now taking place in our Christian society never has 
occurred before. The ruling and more educated minority, which 
has the chief influence on the masses, not only disbelieves in 
the existing religion but is certain that religion no longer is 
necessary at all. It teaches those who doubt the truth of the 
accepted faith not some other more rational and comprehen- 
sive religion than that existing but persuades them that religion 
in general has outlived its time and has become not only a use- 
less but even a harmful organ of social life. 


“Religion is studied by this class of men not as something 





SONS OF GOD 


co 





which we know [can come to know] through our inner experi- 
ence but as an external phenomenon, a ritual of mere fancy 
words, a disease, as it were, to which some people are subject 
and which we can understand only in its external symptoms. 
It is because religion is thus considered that so very many have 
come to believe in nothing. 

“Religion remains, as it always was, the chief motive 
power, the heart of the life of human societies. Without it, as 
without the heart, there can be no rational life. There have 
been and there are many different religions because the expres- 
sion of the relation of man to the Infinite, to God or the gods, 
is different at different times, according to the different degrees 
of development of different nations; but no society of men, since 
men have become rational beings, ever could live and there- 
fore never did live without religion. 

“Tt is true that there have been and still occur, periods in 
the life of nations when the existing religion was so distorted 
and so far behind life that it no longer guided man, and such a 
period 1s the present one. But this cessation of the influence is 
only temporary. Religion, like everything vital, has the capacity 
of being born, developing, growing old and dying, of reviving 
again and reviving yet again in a more perfect form than ever 
before. 

“After the period of the highest development of religion, 
there always follows a period of weakness and lifelessness, 
following which there again follows gradually a period of 
regeneration or new interpretation and of the establishment of a 
religious teaching more clear and rational than ever before. 


Such periods of development, decline and regeneration have 





SONS OF GOD 9 





occurred in all religions; and such a period there is now. Re- 
ligion, in fact, is the definition of man’s life by the connection 
of the human with the Divine, the power of which, over the 
universe and himself, he recognizes and with which he feels 
that he must unite himself and come into conscious relation- 
ship.” 

No other author so thoroughly has analyzed and succintly 
stated the religious and non-religious feelings of men as has 
Reville. ‘Toward the end of the last century, it became apparent 
to all thinkers that religion as then interpreted, was doomed 
and that if faith were to continue to live in the hearts of men, 
new religious sentiment would need to be born. Throughout 
the death struggle of the old interpretation, during the past fifty 
years, the one ray of hope and light was seen in the promise 
that a New Messenger, an incarnation of the spirit of the 
Master-Teacher of the first century, should come among men 
and be felt by all, though possibly seen by few, and that this 
Avatar should give a new interpretation to the old but eternal 
Law. 

This prophecy and expectation were fulfilled in the coming 
of Manists, the Seventh Messenger of the Lord, whose teachings 
already are beginning to be felt both by the selected ones and 
the masses. 

Each age demands a distinctive interpretation of the Laws 
governing the actions of men composing human society. Each 
interpretation must be adapted to the immediate requirements 
of its own particular period of history. The interpreters erron- 
eously (with the exception of Moses) known as Lawgivers, are 
the Messengers, Avatars or Saviors of the Age or Cycle. Such 





10 SONS OF GOD 





were Osiris, Brahma, Buddha, and Jesus who became the Christ. 
And Manisis—Man_ glorified—will become known as such. 
These are Sons of man, who, through their own deliberate, 
conscious efforts and their willingness to suffer in order to help 
their fellow men, became Sons of God and in close communion— 
at-one-ment—with the Father, so close in fact, that they compre- 
hend the spirit of the Law which will help the race to steer away 
from destruction unto personal salvation. 

Truth is forever the same. Divine Laws have not changed 
since the beginning of time nor have their application to the 
actions of men. ‘The world of thought advances, however, and 
with new thoughts or ideas come new actions which require an 
understanding of the governing Laws. Each outgoing cycle 
requires a laying aside of its cloak (as the snake sheds its skin 
and the Soul its body) that the incoming cycle may be “clothed 
upon” with a new garment better suited to its immediate needs. 
The texture, designs and coloring of the cloak of thought are 
determined by the particular emphasis that a given age employs 
in the interpretation of truth. For the human race to be en- 
riched by all the varied aspects that truth and its realization 
may assume, it is necessary for the cloak of interpretation to 
be donned and doffed again and again in accordance with the 
laws of progress and discovery; it is essential that there be for- 
mulated from time to time a new system of emphasis in the 
interpretation of the Laws: 

This is truly a period of stress and strain, suspicion and 
doubt. As already stated, the world of religious ideas has been 
in a transitional stage for the past fifty years. The laying off 
of the old interpretations and the putting on of the new, mark 





SONS OF GOD 11 


a transition period that naturally is attended by unsettledness 
of mind and perplexity of thought. 

To satisfy the need of this period and condition, the Church 
of Illumination, of which this little volume is a textbook, offers 
a new interpretation that is the natural outgrowth of the 
cyclic stage through which the world is passing. It pro- 
claims this interpretation to be the highest that could be 
given to the Laws which govern the actions of men and claims 
this for the reason that it proceeds to the ultimate goal of all that 
is, the Soul of Man, eternal, yet ever born. 

The law of cyclic change positively indicates that the time 
is ripe for a restatement of religious principles—a new presen- 
tation of fundamental laws—suited to men of the present New 
Cycle or New Age. The mental unrest and hunger of the people 
demands a different placing of emphasis in respect to the essen- 
tial features of the science and the philosophy that govern the 
thoughts and actions of men in relation to everyday life and 
in regard to the Immortalization of the individual Soul as a 
requisite for the Age of a thousand years. 

When interpreted in the light of symbology, the Bible nar- 
rative is accepted by the Church of [lumination—the Manistic 
ministry—as an authoritative religious treatise. However, in 
order to obtain a satisfactory comprehension of Bible teachings, 
it is essential to give careful consideration to its symbolic, 
allegorical and mystic elements. The student and interpreter 
must learn to consult the vast library of legend, symbol and 
myth as faithfully and as accurately as he would resort to a 
lexicon of Hebrew and Greek stems and radicals. These 
elements—symbolic, allegorical and mystic—too often considered 


12 SONS OF GOD 





mere meaningless child’s play, are skillful devices for half- 
concealing yet half-revealing the deepest spiritual wisdom. In 
this connection it behooves us to remember a saying of the 
Master-Teacher when surrounded by the innocence of child- 
hood: ‘Unless ye become as little children . . .” and to bear — 
in mind that these words of his have a wider and deeper applica- 
tion than usually believed possible. 

The religious thought of the past centuries has been charac- 
terized largely by mere faith. In respect to the teachings of 
Jesus who became the Christ, the sixth Son of God, the race- 
conception of truth has been passing through a period of child- 
hood and early youth. Childhood is marked particularly by 
faith: the child has faith in his father; he believes implicitly 
in his father’s works and in his principles. When young man- 
hoed is attained, he no longer is satisfied with mere belief: he 
seeks to demonstrate his faith by bringing his ideals into mani- 
festation—he must do such works as his father does and his 
faith demands opportunity to exercise its powers and accomplish 
its works on his own individual responsibility. 

Religious teachings in the past largely have been occupied 
with the effort to convince mankind of the Messiahship of Jesus 
and to establish the claims of the church. Mere faith, however 
sublime in itself, no longer satisfies. The statement, “faith 
without works is dead,” has become something more than a 
trite saying and thundering forth goes the fiat: Thus must thou 
do (not merely believe) or thou shalt die (cease to be). 

It is the Law of Growth that faith must demonstrate its 
powers. It must work out its principles. It must execute. It 
must create. The New Age, the Manistic Cycle, will be charac- 





SONS OF GOD 13 


terized by the power of intelligent faith, a faith that is an in- 
centive to the execution of ideals fully in harmony with an un- 
derstanding of the Divine Law. 















A clear distinction should be drawn between blind belief 
or unquestioning acceptance and intelligent or seeing faith; 
between faith that is passive and faith that is active; between 
faith in a personality and faith in a principle; faith in Jesus 
and faith in the Christ. Jesus is the symbolic term of a man, a 
personality; the Christ is the manifestation of the Conscious, 
Individualized, Illuminated Soul in Jesus or, for that matter, 
in any man who lives in accordance with the Law. Jesus, an 
historic character, like the wonder-worker and healer, Apol- 
lonius of Tyana, lived his earth life and passed out of the 
plane of manifestation. The Christ, as a divine principle, 
developed and individualized in Jesus, as in other men who be- 
came Sons of God, is eternal. Faith in Jesus was a blind faith; 
aes in Chess as a state of consciousness that all who will a state of consciousness that all who will may 
is an eect and active faith. 

How was Jesus enabled to live the perfect life?—a life the 


entire biography of which may be condensed into five words: 

Service is the key to the all of life. By a deliberate trans- 
mutation of the gross into the finer; by a conscious realization 
of the spirit of the Law; by a practical application of the ideal 
of love and sympathy unto men; by a masterly direction of an 
exalted will; by a faith that consciously operates in harmony 
with the Divine Law; by the constant influence of a thought- 
atmosphere normally characterized by the qualities of kindness, 


14 SONS OF GOD 


compassion and justice; by the Illumination of the Soul so that 
it radiates its own light of understanding and its own warmth 
of love with impartial tenderness on friend and foe;—by these 
did Jesus become the Christ. By the same path comes Manisis, 
the Seventh Messenger, and as it has been for both these Sons 
of God, so is it possible for all men to attain through these 
methods, henceforth for a thousand years. 

The many who are fully satisfied with the foregoing expo- 
sition are ready for such a change of emphasis in the interpreta- 
tion of the life and teachings of the Master-Teacher as will 
make his inculcations applicable to the present age. Thinkers 
such as these are eager for the promulgation of the Laws and 
methods that will enable them to realize the Sonship promised 
as within the reach of all the faithful. These will wish to 
understand “the way, the truth and the life” that will help 
them to attain Conscious Immortality. Their faith refuses to 
be satisfied unless it may express itself in works that exemplify 
its character. Their nature demands a fulfilment of the age of 
faith by an age of works that shall both test and prove the Law. 
They demand proof of the Christic teachings in their own ex- 
perience, a verification of the possibility of the consummation 
of Conscious Individualization. Such a faith will manifest 
itself by a willingness to make every effort to understand and 
apply the Divine Law in their own lives. 

To meet the needs of the New Age in its demand for an 
interpretation of the Laws of the Kingdom of the Soul, has been 
one purpose of the previous editions of this textbook of the 
Church of Illumination. The further purpose of this new edi- 


tion is to herald the arrival of Manisis, the Messenger and In- 





SONS OF GOD 15 


terpreter. 

That it is possible and necessary for man to understand in 
order that he intelligently may obey the Law and live a life in 
harmony with it, is becoming a settled conviction among the 
sincere leaders of religious thought today. 

That Immortality of Soul in the individual is attainable, 
is a fundamental tenet of the Church of Illumination. Immor- 
tality of Soul, however, is not thought of as something that is 
thrust on all alike, regardless of their desire or active seeking; 
it is not an inevitable factor of existence. The positive law of 
goodness (kindness and forgiveness) functioning in the lives of 
men, leads to immortality of Soul or to Soul Consciousness, 
if consciously directed into the proper channels. 

In each life is a spark, a germ of the Divine Nature. This 
spark is the potential Christos or the potential individual Soul 
or that “light that lighteth all the world of man’s conscious- 
ness.’ When man becomes conscious of this light within his 
own being and recognizes and obeys its “still small voice,” he 
has reached a state bordering on Illumination of Soul or Im- 
mortalization. When he has found within himself the CENTER 
whence cometh the LIGHT, Soul Consciousness is attained. This 
is the beginning of Initiation; the first revealment of the Divine 
Mysteries. 

The Divine Spark in each individual may be developed 
into a center or globe of pure white fire; it may become a 
dynamic nucleus of living fire—the Fire of Love and Immortal- 
ity. This fact gives the key to the significance of the term 
“Temple of Illumination.” Man in toto, is the nucleus of Ilumi- 


nation, the Temple of the living, radiating Christos. Man is 


16 SONS OF GOD 





the architect of the temple of Solomon, a spiritual structure 
wherein the sun shall constantly shine. The purified love 
dwelling in his heart and the clarified understanding of his 
Soul become the altar fire of this temple. This flame continu- 
ally radiates its light and its warmth of compassion and “good © 
will toward all men.” 

Man is made in the image of his God. He is a reflection 
of the Divine, possessing the powers and the attributes of the 
Infinite. In different personalities, these divine qualities are 
in various stages of unfoldment. In one person they may be 
latent and concealed beneath the crust of a wholly selfish per- 
sonality but unless burned and seared by the fire of persistent, 
Soul-destroying acts, they none the less are a potentiality, 
awaiting the unfolding process of growth. In another person 
they may be in the incipient stage of a nucleus of goodness. 
In this state, they are indicated by an active, wholesome con- 
science although the life itself may be entangled painfully and 
hampered by the selfish personality. In yet another person, 
these qualities may have become a dynamic, vital expression of 
individualized life so that the Soul is conscious of its insepar- 
able connection with the Infinite. These potentialities may be 
condensed into a center of radiation, into a perfect pyramidal 
flame that warms the desire-nature with love and illumines 
the understanding with wisdom. In this state, the Divine quali- 
ties of love, kindness, compassion and justice unconsciously 
radiate the blessings of their inherent goodness to those with 
whom the life comes in contact. 

Creation is the manifestation of the Divine Mind. All 


things, having been created by God, are in themselves good but 





SONS OF GOD 17 


man through the exercise of his free will, because of other than 
constructive application of the Law, has perverted many of the 
things that are inherently good; this has brought evil upon him- 
self and his fellow man just as he has misdirected potentialities 
naturally blessed and brought upon himself and others the pen- 
alties which primitive man rightly named ‘“‘curses.” 

In his fourfold nature of body, spirit, mind and Soul, man 
is an epitome of the universe. Potentially, he is the Divine 
Creation in miniature, termed the microcosm and, consequently, 
the ‘little god” and the “little world.”” Man is the climax, the 
culmination of forces which for ages have been seeking expres- 
sion. How to develop his forces, bring them into activity and 
then express them harmoniously, is the problem before him. To 
use his forces constructively as intended by the Divine Purpose, 
and only in the service of mankind, is the ideal that he must 
be led to comprehend and then choose for himself. ‘To engage 
his possibilities and use his powers in obedience to the Creative 
(building, constructive) Law, will result in the elevation of his 
entire being. Conversely, to pervert his forces and divert these 
possibilities into channels of error and sin (1%. @., wrong use, 
destructive action) brings about loss and final destruction. 

God could not possibly place a higher mark of honor on 
man than to give him the right of choice, the power of decision 
and the ability to direct both his Will and his forces in the 
execution of plans in accordance with his own decrees. Every 
power is, in itself, good (constructive and exalting) although it 
admits of a twofold expression: positive and negative. Every 
law of man’s nature is, in itself, good but also permits of a 


twofold functioning: constructive (upbuilding) and destructive 





18 SONS OF GOD 





(disintegrating). The APPLICATION which one makes of 
a law or a force alone determines its effect. Every virtue is 
offset by a possible corresponding vice and, in the words of 
Manisis, the Messenger of the New Age: 


“Virtue forced upon those of my brethren ~ 
whose hearts have not comprehended the Law 
and who seek not the path of virtue, is vice. 

“Therefore, seek not to cause my brethren 
to be good by the sword [military power] nor 
by the other compulsion [legislation] lest they 
turn from the one evil to a greater one and the 
penalty ‘be upon your heads. 

“Teach my children the Law. My brethren 
are good in heart but know not the truth. As 
my Father who is in heaven has not sought to 
shackle the free will of his children, neither 
doth he give into your hands or even my [his 
Son’s] hands, the authority to take this right of 
choice from them, and no man has the Divine 
Power to say unto his brother ‘thus shalt thou 
do’ or ‘thou shalt not do thus,’ unless that man 
interferes with the free will of his brother.” 
—Manisis, Messenger of the Lord God Adonai, 
Father of Light. 


The results of man’s acts depend entirely on their direction 
or tendency. Every force, every possibility and every poten- 
tiality placed within man’s reach, is intended to fulfill bene- 
ficent ends. Every organ of the body, every function of the 
mind, is intended to serve a noble purpose. When directed in 
harmony with the Divine Law, the result is good. It is there- 
fore time to teach every human being the Law of Individual 
Responsibility—that he, personally, is responsible for his every 
thought and act, and that he must pay the penalty of perversion 
or misdirection to the uttermost farthing. 

A distinctive aim of the present volume is to give plain and 
not-to-be-misunderstood instructions concerning the laws of 


right and justice that man may choose his steps intelligently 


SONS OF GOD 19 





and learn how to cultivate his manifold powers and direct them 
into proper channels. 

The Divine Law underlies all true growth, advancement 
and progress. Both in its positive and negative aspects, this 
Law is exacting and relentless and neither God nor man can 
free the individual from the reaction of an attempt to defy, 
abuse or nullify the Law. Obedience to the Law is constructive 
and upbuilding and tends toward growth of Soul, reaching as 
its natural goal the plane of Soul Consciousness, the Immor- 
talization of the individual. Failure to comply with the con- 
ditions imposed by the Divine Law is destructive and disinte- 
grating in its effects, leading as it always does toward diffusion 
and dissolution; these effects are the opposite of growth, 7. e., 
self-destruction as certain as deliberate suicide. 

The Temple of Illuminati is pronounced in its recognition 
of this Law, both in its positive and its negative aspects. Con- 
sequently, while the Temple continually holds before the minds 
of men the ideal of growth and development that ultimately 
lead to Immortalization, it also admits that persistent destruc- 
tive thinking and wrong doing tend toward the total loss of 
individuality. By the operation of evil’s own law and not as a 
punishment from God, persistently to think, desire and follow 
evil, generates the internal fire, which, by its very nature, is 
destructive cf the self. This process of self-destruction makes 
possible the dissolution of the individual Soul that creates these 
disintegrating conditions, and thereby liberates or separates from 
the personality the original elements of a potential divinity with 
which that personality had been entrusted. 


The positive aspect and activity of the Divine Law is 


20 SONS OF GOD 





known as the process of salvation or regeneration; the negative 
aspect and activity brings about degeneration or loss of Soul. 
The doctrine of salvation or regeneration receives the most 
practical attention in the teachings of the Church of Hlumina- 
tion; as a dogma or definition of terms, however, the doctrine 
offers little of interest. 

The term “salvation” is not to be interpreted as meaning 
one specific or definite act; salvation embraces a long-continued 
process of growth or development of Soul and its culmination 
is Illumination of Soul, the Immortalization of the Individual, 
the attainment of Soul Consciousness. ‘These attainments are 
stages of growth and are not to be thought of as a climax of 
perfection and the end of all further effort, struggle and prog- 
ress. Illumination of the Soul is but the beginning—the first 
Degree—of experience on a higher plane of expression. 

The one potent reason for the Christic—now Manistic— 
teachings is the establishment of direct communication or com- 
munion between God and his creature, man. Every man who 
takes upon himself the role of intercessor in these communions— 
except in the very beginning and under special circumstances— 
hinders those he seeks to guide from entering into direct com- 
munion with the Father by means of their own Conscious In- 
dividualized Souls. All that the teacher-guide can do is to point 
out and lead the way. Each one must himself travel the Path 
that ultimately leads to Divine Illumination and kinship with 
God and the Sons and Daughters of the Father. 


The Beginning of Cycles 


Ne ew Ages—New Eras—New Dispensations—New M pies 


—— ———————— Ca ees 
T THE time given as the birth of Jesus, the Nazarene, 
Son of Joseph, there were three distinct orders, co- 
fraternities or castes among the Jews. These were 
similar in their organization but widely different in 
Sar | their teachings and beliefs. These castes then were 
known as sects and, to history, as the Pharisees, the 


VERN and the Gssenes 
The Pharisees and Sadducees will have our first considera- 


tion. 








Both the Pharisees and Sadducees were united cordially 
in sentiment respecting the fundamental doctrines which con- 
stituted the basis of the religion of the Jews. Each of them 
rejected with detestation the belief in a plurality of gods; they 
acknowledged the existence of one Supreme, Almighty God 
whom they regarded as the Creator of the Universe and whom 
they presumed to be endowed with absolute perfection. In this, 
the Essenes fully shared. Both sects also were agreed equally 
in the opinion that God had selected the Hebrews from all other 
nations of the earth as his “peculiar people” and had bound 
them to himself by an unchangeable and everlasting covenant. 
With the same unanimity, they maintained the divine mission 


of Moses, affirming that he was the ambassador of heaven and, 





22 SONS OF GOD 


consequently, that the law delivered at Mount Siani and pro- 
mulgated by his ministry, was of divine origin. It was also 
the firm opinion of the Pharisees and Sadducees that the books 
of the Old Testament contained ample instruction respecting the 
way to salvation and eternal happiness, and that whatever prin- 
ciples or duties were inculcated in these writings must be rever- 
ently received and implicitly obeyed. 

However, an irreconcilable difference of opinion and the 
most vehement disputes prevailed among them respecting the 
original source or fountain whence all religion had been educed. 
The Sadducees rejected with disdain the oral law to which the 
Pharisees paid the greatest deference. And the interpretation of 
the written law yielded still further ground for acrimonious con- 
tention. ‘The Pharisees maintained that the law as committed 
to Moses and likewise all other content of the sacred volumes, 
had a twofold sense or meaning: one, plain and obvious to every 
reader; the other, abstruse and mystical. This was also a fun- 
damental belief with the Essenes and is, to this day, with the 
successors of the Essenes—the true Rosicrucians.* The Sad- 
ducees, on the contrary, would admit of nothing beyond the 
simple interpretation of the words according to their strict litera] 
sense. On the other hand, the Essenes differed somewhat as 
to this: first, they considered that the words of the law possessed 
no force or power whatever in themselves but merely exhibited 
the shadows or the images of celestial objects, of virtues and 
of duties; second, they maintained that salvation could not come 


by mere faith in the law but by doing—living—as the law com- 


*See “The Rosicrucians: Their Teachings.” 





SONS OF GOD 23 


manded. 

In point of numbers, riches, authority and influence, the 
Pharisees took precedence of all sects. And, as they constantly 
manifested an extraordinary display of religion in an apparent 
zeal for the cultivation of piety and brotherly love, and by an 
affectation of superior sanctity in their opinions, manners and 
dress, the influence they possessed over the minds of the people 
was unbounded—insomuch that it may be truthfully said that 
they gave whatever direction they pleased to public affairs. It 
‘is unquestionable, however, that the religion of the Pharisees 
for the most part was founded in consummate hypocricy and 
that in reality they were generally slaves to every vicious ap- 
petite, proud, arrogant, avaricious, and consulted only the grati- 
fication of their carnal desires—even at such moments as when 
they professed to be engaged in the services of their God. 

These odious features in the character of the Pharisees drew 
upon them the most pointed rebukes of the Master-Teacher, 
rebukes administered with more severity indeed than he be- 
stowed on the Sadducees, who, although they had departed wide- 
ly from the principles of genuine religion, yet did not impose 
themselves upon their fellow men by a pretended sanctity or 
devote themselves with insatiable greed to the acquisition of 
honors and riches. 

The Pharisees admitted the immortality of the Soul, the 
resurrection of the body and a future state of reward and 
punishment. They also believed to a certain extent in the free 
agency of man but beyond this they supposed man’s action to 
be controlled by the decree of fate. These points of doctrine, 
however, seem not to have been understood or explained by 





24 SONS OF GOD 





these sects in the same way, neither does it appear that either 
of the two took any great pains to ascertain and to define them 
with accuracy and precision or to support them by reasoning 
and argument. 

The Sadducees were much inferior in point of numbers to 
the Pharisees but on the other hand their body was composed 
entirely of persons distinguished for opulence and prosperity. 
Those who belonged to them were wholly devoid of sentiments 
of benevolence and compassion towards others, whereas, the 
Pharisees, despite their hypocricy, ever were ready to relieve the 
needy and the afflicted. 

The Sadducees were fond of passing their lives in one 
uninterrupted course of ease and pleasure, insomuch that it was 
with difficulty they could be prevailed on to undertake the 
duties of the magistracy or other public function. Their leading 
tenet was that all our hopes and fears terminate with the 
present life, the Soul being involved in one common fate with 
the body and, like it, liable to perish and be annihilated. Upon 
this principle, then, it was natural for them to maintain that 
obedience to the Divine Law would be rewarded by the Most 
High God with length of days and an abundance of the good 
things of this life, such as honors, distinction and riches, while 
the violators of the law, correspondingly, would find their 
punishment in the temporary sufferings and afflictions of the 
present time. ‘They always connected the favors of heaven with 
a state of worldly prosperity and would not regard any as vir- 
tuous or as befriended by heaven except the fortunate and the 
happy. They had no thought of compassion for the poor and 
miserable, their desires and hopes being centered in a life of 





SONS OF GOD 25 





pleasure, leisure, ease and voluptuous gratification. 

The Essenes were divided into two branches: the one, 
characterized by a life of celibacy and dedicated to the instruc- 
tion, education and training of others; the other branch, known 
as the Therapeutae, were permitted to marry, not with a view 
to sensual gratification but for the purpose of propagating the 
human species and also for the purpose of the development of 
certain powers which is possible only through the complete ful- 
filment of the Marriage Rite.* These branches were distin- 
guished by the people by the terms practical Essenes and theoret- 
ical Essenes. 

The Essenes were distributed in the cities and throughout 
the countries of Syria (as the Ansaireth), Palestine and Egypt 
(as Priest-Initiates of Osiris). In fact, after the fall of the 
Temples of Initiation in Egypt, they were a part of and suc- 
cessors to the Egyptian Initiates. Their bond of association 
embraced not merely a community of tenets and similarity of 
manners and particular observances but extended also to a com- 
munity of goods. Their demeanor was sober and chaste and 
their mode of life, in every respect, was subjected to the strictest 
regulations and submitted to the superintendence of governors 
whom they appointed over themselves and who held such posi- 
tion for life. 

The Essenes devoted their entire time to labor (principally 
agricultural, which they held to be man’s most sacred occupation 
since it supplied the first and most essential of mortal man’s 


need), meditation and prayer. They were most sedulously atten- 


*See Divine Alchemy: a private book of instruction issued 
only to students. 


26 SONS OF GOD 


tive to the calls of justice and humanity and every moral duty. 
They believed in the unity of God or One Supreme Being and 
in principalities and hierarchies which were lesser than the One 
Supreme God but essential in the personification of Divine Law. 
They believed the Soul to have fallen (retrograded) through 
disobedience to the Creative (generative) Law, from a state of 
purity and light, into dark bodies which housed the Soul; they 
considered Souls, during their continuance in these bodies, to 
be confined as it were within the walls of loathsome prisons 
which had to be changed (transmuted) into temples of God 
through obedience to the dictates of the Divine Law. They 
observed great abstinence, allowing themselves but little bodily 
nourishment and little gratification of the senses. The cere- 
monies and rituals or external forms which were enjoined by the 
Law of Moses to be observed in the worship of God, were not 
regarded by the Essenes as necessary except as symbolizing 
the greater worship within the temple of man. Like Initiates 
of old Egypt, they maintained that the ritualistic form or cere- 
mony should not be permitted the neophyte until he had per- 
sonified the spirit of it by that interior development known 
today to the /lluminati as Soul Consciousness become Individ- 
ualized. True Rosicrucians know this as the “Passing of the 
Threshold” during the neophyte’s progress toward Initiation or 
Immortalization—an inner state taking place within the realm 
of man, neither by means of nor through the help of any outer 
ceremony but by growth. 

Although throughout the Biblical narrative, we find the 
Master-Teacher repeatedly denouncing in the bitterest terms 
both the Pharisees and Sadducees, there is not a single instance 


SONS OF GOD 27 


of his having so denounced the Essenes among whom he was 
trained; and in all points, the inculcations of the Master- 
Teacher correspond with those of the Essenes. Both taught a 
selfish-less, purified life devoted to love, forgiveness and minis- 
try among humanity. The abstinence practiced by both from 
all harmful things to which the world and flesh adhere, proves 
that they understood the illusions of these human practices and 
teachings and recognized their inadequacy for bringing happi- 
ness or the development which alone can lead to eternal life— 
Immortalization. The Master-Teacher did not desire the things 
the world had to offer him, for though he was “tempted in all 
things as we are,” he did not fail—he had been too well taught 
in the understanding of the Law. ‘To understand is to know 
and be guarded. In all his temptations he realized that the 
things offered were delusions in that they could bring only 
temporary benefits and possessed no virtue in leading to Unity 
and Divinity. He had gained wisdom, not through books or 
mere oral instructions but through understanding—by becoming, 
through growth, while under training. 

When the Soul unfolds and develops and comes into har- 
monious relationship with the Wisdom which is from God— 
and all men may accomplish this—it quickly recognizes the emo- 
tions resulting from intrinsic goodness, love, humility and for- 
giveness, as well as the passions which are basically evil be- 
cause due to selfishness, hatred, love of self, bitterness and 
antagonism, and that there is but one way to attain Wisdom—by 
purification and personal Illumination. 

The Essenes taught the Master-Teacher that the One 
God was the God of the Egyptians, the God of Moses, of 





28 SONS OF GOD 





Abraham, of Isaac and of Jacob; that he is the Creator, the 
Controller, the Ruler of the Universe; that he is Omnipotent, 
Universal and All-embracing; that his laws are immutable and 
supreme; and that all may become like him by living in accord- 
ance with his Law. The Master-Teacher was constantly im- 
pressed with the fact that he was to manifest Sonship with the 
Father but that to know him, to become like him, he must BE 
like him—must be raised up in his likeness; that the mortal 
must be changed—transmuted; that mortality must put on Im- 
mortality; that the corruptible must put on Incorruption but 
that in putting on incorruption it is not necessary to lay aside 
the material body for the material is change-able, not only at 
death but during life and it is indeed for this very purpose 
that man is come to the earth plane and has an earthly, carnal 
body. 

In this mystery of the transmutation, the Master-Teacher 
had been fully instructed and his life among the Essenes was 
such as to bring about this change in him. During his ministry 
and in all his teachings, he taught this doctrine—how to ac- 
complish the change from the corruptible to the incorruptible. 
This was indeed the purpose of his ministry. 

God is intelligence—Universal Intelligence and Wisdom. 
This Universal Intelligence is in all things. “All that is, was 
made by him.” Without this Wisdom and Intelligence nothing 
can exist, for God is in all things. The Infinite Wisdom is 
all that is, all that has been and all that ever will be. If the 
Universal Intelligence controls all things and is changeless, 
then Immortalized (Glorified) man, made in his image, is like 
him. He has wisdom and intelligence and is empowered even 


SONS OF GOD 29 


with means of access to the Divine Intelligence and Wisdom. 
This is the degree of Consciousness that the Master-Teacher 
attained through the training and in the company of the Essenes. 

As man lays aside or draws away from the unlasting 
things the world offers and from all that the carnal man seeks 
to attain in ambition, fame and self-glory, he is able to grow 
into the full realization of his Divine inheritance. Soul De- 
velopment—spiritual training—alone is the key to the Door of 
Wisdom. The Essenes thus trained and developed the Nazarene 
boy until he became the Christos manifested and they called him 
“the Christ”—that is to say, the Christ-become. Such develop- 
ment is not only the controlling and subduing of the physical 
and the carnal but it is the process of bringing into Conscious- 
ness the Divine Spark within. As this Divine Entity is awaken- 
ed and brought into Consciousness, wisdom comes to it and 
gradually Sonship is attained. 

While it was the instruction and training that the son of 
Joseph received from the Essenes that helped him to become an 
Initiate and a Son of God, it was not alone this preparation 
which made him the Sixth Messenger of God, the Avatar of the 
Christian Age. The conditions of the times; the numerous re- 
ligious sects (some of great power but all wholly lacking in a 
saving doctrine); the need of the people that they be brought 
out of their lethargy and that a reign of justice be established; 
the fearful results of long misrule without a single element of 
true righteousness and justice: all these things cried out to high 
heaven for relief as indeed they always must. 

Jerusalem was the pride of Israel; but what a pride! Under 
the Seleucide and Maccabees, first by Pompey and finally by 


30 SONS OF GOD 





Herod, Jerusalem had been subjected to the most terrible sieges. 
Blood had been shed in torrents; the Roman legions had butch- 
ered the populace and innumerable crucifixions had polluted the 
surrounding country. After such horrors and the humiliation 
following on the Roman occupation, Herod, in irony, after 
decimating the Sanhedrin and reducing the pontiff to a trem- 
bling slave, rebuilt the temple with greater magnificence, pomp 
and glory than ever. But to the people who had been robbed 
and tortured, was given no relief. The city was filled with 
beggars and starving people and with innumerable ones who had 
suffered torture. The borders of the pool of Siloam were 
crowded with cripples, lepers, paralytics and even maniacs, and 
yet the priests of the temple—priests in name only!—followed 
their routine of ceremonies and sacrifices and their jumble of 
words without being capable of offering the slightest relief. 

It was these sights, witnessed by the tender-hearted Initiate, 
who had been carefully sheltered and knew little of “man’s in- 
humanity to man,” which first tortured him, as only a God’s 
Messenger is capable of feeling torture, and then flooded his 
heart and soul with the mission before him, that fated Jesus, the 
son of Joseph, Initiate of the Essenes, to enter upon the mission 
as Savior of the race, beginning with the first century (the Chris- 
tian era) of the past Age. 

And now another such time has come upon us. Universal 
injustice rules and the cry of sorrow constantly rises to high 
heaven, Again has the cyclic law begun to operate. The time 
of a New Dispensation is at hand and one who feels even as 
Jesus, son of Joseph, felt, and as others before him felt, is 


among men to point out the errors, rebuke the unjust and invoke 





SONS OF GOD 31 





the operation of the Law of Justice so that right may prevail. 

But the world is large! There are many cities. The popu- 
lation is innumerable. The Messenger cannot enter all the tem- 
ples to chastise and cast out “the money changers” (profiteers 
of various kinds). ‘Therefore his voice must be made to thunder 
throughout the Nation (the New World—America—the land 
overshadowed with wings—the Eagle) for the people to take 
warning: 


“Have ye, O my people, not heard of the 
Law which one of my brethren of the long ago 
phrased and gave to the children of men for 
their guidance, and which read, ‘As it is above 
so must it become below,’ lest men perish from 
the face of the earth. And are ye not aware 
that in his love, my brother Hermes sought to 
teach men that the Law whereby my Father 
who is in heaven governs justly and righteously 
those who are with my Father in his heavenly 
home, is the same Law which shall be for the 
governing of men in their dealings with their 
fellow men. 

“If ye have heard, then ye have forgotten 
or, in your arrogance, ye seek to defy the Laws 
of my Father and listen to those of the lesser 
worlds where the carcass of the dog, the leaf of 
the tree and every drop of water is peopled with 
millions of creatures, all of them terrible and 
fearful in their nature since they know not of 
any law but tthe fight for their own existence 
and each species preys upon the others and 
devours each the other, and the greater of one 
species devours the lesser of another, and so on, 
eternally, one preying upon another; knowing 
no Law but tthe self; one destroying another. 

“And now it has come to pass that favored 
men in the new paradise protected by the spirit 
of God, have become selfish and have listened 
to the wiles of the serpent, and again man preys 
upon man and exploits him for selfish purposes 
and even his own brother no longer feels safe; 
so that now the Father has sent me to teach men 
anew the Laws of their salvation that they may 
accept them before it is too late. 

“Ye of the chosen people have forgotten or 





SONS OF GOD 


are disobeying the commandments of my other 
Brother, Jesus the Christ, and ye foolishly and 
with great evil, are trying, in defiance of the 
Divine Law, to ‘put new wine into old bottles,’ 
and because of your ignorance ye shall be made 
to pay unto the ‘uttermost farthing,’ for ye are 
not seeking to do your Father’s will but the will 
of your own carnal selves, and instead of offer- 
ing to serve your brethren, ye are seeking to 
govern them; and your Father has said that ye 
shall govern yourselves and that ye shall not in- 
terfere with the households of your elder 
brethren lest their sins be placed against you 
and ye be destroyed with them. 

“‘“As above, so below,’ did my Brother in- 
struct ye and, this is the Law of the heavens. 
Ye shall help your elder brethren but ye shall 
in no wise seek to govern them. ‘I have given 
ye a new land and have made ye a separate 
people, that ye may do my will and help thy 
brethren,’ saith my Father and, if ye obey not, 
then shall ye not come into paradise nor shall ye 
reap the blessings of the New Age nor of the 
shadow of the Hagle’s wings. 

“And the Father, my God, speaks yet further 
unto me, saying: 

“‘T gave unto my people a new earth and 
good Voices, and for a little while my people 
obeyed me and listened to my Voice but as my 
new people gained strength and reaped many 
blessings, they became more and more defying; 
in their conceit they forgot my Laws and set up 
idols, until, lastly, they are no longer the instru- 
ments of my Will and have substituted Moloch 
for their God. 


““And now it has further come to pass that 
great plagues are upon the people of my paradise 
and in their pride men have established them- 
selves as gods and have given unto their 
brethren new laws to obey, in defiance of my 
Word that my children should be free, and they 
have multiplied the evils and now the children 
who still hear the murmur of my voice are 
accursed with greater evils. 


“‘And those who still hear my voice are 
being enslaved by having much of their little 
taken from them, so that greater injustice may 
be done, and the innocent are being debauched 
and destroyed, and the mothers of my children 
are punished unmercifully and without justice, 





SONS OF GOD 33 





““And now it has come to pass that those 
men who no longer hear my voice have set them- 
selves up as judges and in defiance of my Mes- 
sengers are setting up another kingdom, such as 
I, 'thy God, destroyed for its wickedness and the 
debasement of the hearts of my mothers; and 
seek in their ignorance and self-glory, to take 
unto themselves little children, of whom “is. the 
kingdom of heaven,” to defile them; and, if the 
many of my children will not arise and destroy 
these false gods, then shall my voice be invoked 
and my blessings shall be withdrawn and the 
angel shall hide her head and cast her shadow 
no longer over the land promised to my children. 

““These things say I, the Lord thy God, to 
thee, Manisis, my Messenger, that thou, my Son, 
mayest warn thy brethren to forsake their evil 
ways and return to their God and to cease to 
take the bread I gave my children, from them, 
lest I withhold my love and have their dis- 
obedience turn upon them and destroy them,’ ” 


LIBERAL INTERPRETATION 


“Have ye, O my people, not heard of the Law which one 
of my brethren [Hermes] of the long ago [ancient Egypt] 
phrased and gave to the children of men for their guidance, and 
which read: ‘As it is above so must it become [so shall it be} 
below,’ lest men perish from the face of the earth? And are 
ye not aware that in his love my brother Hermes sought to 
teach men that the Law whereby my Father who is in heaven 
governs justly and righteously those who are with my Father 
in his heavenly home [the realms of the heavenly or spiritual 
powers|, is the same Law which shall be for the governing of 
men in their dealings with their fellow men? 

“Tf ye have heard, then ye have forgotten or in your 
arrogance ye seek to defy the Laws of my Father and listen to 
apply those of the lesser [antmal] worlds, where the carcass of 


the dog, the leaf of the tree and every drop of water is peopled 


34 SONS OF GOD 





with millions of creatures, all of them terrible and fearful in 
their nature, since they know not of any law but the fight for 
their own existence and each species preys upon the others and 
devours each the other, and the greater of one species devours 
the lesser of another and so on, eternally, one preying upon an- 
other; knowing no law but the self; one [brother] destroying 
another [brother]. 

‘“‘And now it has come to pass that favored [selected] men 
in the new paradise [New World] protected by the spirit of God 
[Land overshadowed with wings|, have become selfish and have 
listened to the wiles of the serpent [ignoring the Law of Hermes 
and obeying the laws which govern the animal life—the animal- 
culae—of the lowest world] and again man preys upon man and 
exploits him for selfish purposes, and even his own brother 
[of the flesh] no longer feels safe; so that now the Father has 
sent me to teach men anew the Laws of their salvation that they 
may accept them before it is too late. 

“Ye of the chosen people have forgotten or are disobeying 
the commandments of my other Brother, Jesus [who became] the 
Christ, and ye foolishly and with great evil, are trying, in de- 
fiance of the Divine Law [law of causation] to ‘put new wine 
into old bottles,’ [vide, the League of Nations, the spectacle of 
an attempt to apply the ideas and ideals of a new nation to those 
of the old world which is now in the throes of death and which 
can have a resurrection to new life only through a transmutation 
taking place within itself] and because of your ignorance ye 
shall be made to pay unto the ‘uttermost farthing,’ for ye are 
not seeking to do your Father’s will but the will of your own 


carnal selves, and instead of offering to serve your brethren, ye 


SONS OF GOD 35 


are seeking to govern them; and your Father has said that ye 
shall govern yourselves [the Constitution as formulated by the 
founders of the New Continent—America| and that ye shall not 
interfere with the households of your elder brethren [the older 
nations| lest their sins [evils, weakness—Karma| be placed 
against you and ye be destroyed with them. 

‘“*As above, so below’ did my Brother instruct ye, and this 
is the Law of the heavens. Ye shall help your elder brethren 
[older nations] but ye shall in no wise seek to govern [interfere 
with| them. ‘I have given ye a new land and have made ye a 
separate people, that ye may do my will and help your brethren,’ 
saith my Father, and if ye obey not, then ye shall not come into 
paradise [men shall die as they did of old and shall not know 
Consctousness| nor shall ye reap the blessings of the New Age 
nor of the shadow [ protection] of the Eagle’s wings. 

“And the Father, my God, speaks yet further unto me, 
saying: 

““*T gave unto my people a new earth [a new world— 
America] and good Voices [the founders of the Republic and 
their Laws, 1. e., voices| and for a little while my people obeyed 
me and listened to my Voice [Law of Hermes—‘as above, so 
below’ | but as my new people gained strength [became numer- 
ous] and reaped many blessings [many good things and greater 
ease| they became more and more defying [arrogant] and in 
their conceit they forgot my Laws [became ignorant] and set up 
idols [made laws based on their own desires instead of on the 
will of God| until, lastly, they are no longer the instruments of 
my Will [the Constitution as formulated by the men selected by 
high heaven] and have substituted Moloch for their God. 


36 SONS OF GOD 





“ “And now it has further come to pass that great plagues 
[evils] are upon the people of my paradise [the land selected by 
God for the kingdom of a thousand years], and in their pride 
[conceit and ignorance of the Divine Law] men have established 
themselves as gods [selfish reformers] and have given | formulat- 
ed] unto their brethren new laws to obey, in defiance of my 
Word [fiat] that my children should be free [have right of 
choice], and they have multiplied the evils [substituted greater 
evils for lesser], and now the children who still hear the murmur 
of my voice [the many who try to obey all laws] are accursed 
with greater evils [for instance, the evils of prohibition—the 
substitution of fearful poisons for lesser poisons, the poisoning 
and destruction of countless thousands, the consequent dishonesty 
and maladministration which results, and the robbery of the 
mass to make up for the loss]. 

“ “And those who still hear my voice [the non-political mul- 
titude| are being enslaved [robbed] by having much of their 
little [¢ncome] taken from them so that greater injustice may be 
done [the attempted enforcement of non-enforceable legislation 
—non-enforceable because contrary to Divine Law and human 
nature which is the right of nature], and the innocent are being 
debauched and destroyed [through millions of road-houses and 
dance halls where boys and girls meet and drink poisonous rum] 
and the mothers of my children are punished unmercifully and 
without justice [countless very poor self-supporting women are 
forced to pay taxes which are no less than extortion, so that mil- 
lions may be granted for enforcements to be paid to men who 
themselves are, in many instances, in league with those fiendish 
ghouls who prey on human life by flooding the country—God’ 5 





SONS OF GOD 37 





paradise—the land overshadowed with wings—with potsons that 
destroy manhood, womanhood, body and Soul]. 

““And now it has come to pass that those men who no 
longer hear my voice [know God’s will or the Divine Law] have 
set themselves up as judges [dictators] and in defiance of my 
Messengers [the founders of the country who wrote the Constt- 
tution] are attempting to set up another kingdom [Sparta] such 
as I thy God destroyed for its wickedness and the debasement 
of the hearts of my mothers; and seek in their ignorance and 
self-glory to take unto themselves little children of whom “is 
the kingdom of heaven,” to defile them [the attempted Twentieth 
Amendment to the Constitution which ultimately would place all 
children under the control of a centralized government]; and if 
the many of my children [the multitudes not engaged in making 
Law| will not arise and destroy these false gods, then shall my 
voice [my Laws] be invoked and my blessings [ promises] shall 
be withdrawn and the angel [the Eagle] shall hide her head and 
cast her shadow [wings] no longer over the land promised to my 
children [the New World]. 

“ “These things say I, the Lord thy God, to thee, Manisis, 
my Messenger, that thou my Son mayest warn thy brethren to 
forsake their evil ways and return to their God [obedience to 
the spirit of the original Constitution] and to cease to take from 
my children ‘the bread I gave them [interfere with those 
rights of men which do not trample upon the rights of others or 
bring loss or sorrow], lest I withhold my love and have [permit] 
their disobedience [their own unjust, foolish and ignorant law] 


to turn upon them and destroy them.’ ” 


38 SONS OF GOD 


POSTULATE 


Many, many centuries before the country now known as 
America was discovered by Eric the Red, Jehovah Adonai, the 
Father of Light, (not Jehovah the angry, the destroyer) made a 
promise to one of the children of Israel, that a land should be 
given unto the descendants [Manasseh] of one of them and that 
this land should become ultimately an earthly paradise, where 
right and justice should govern and where man should know the 
fruition of the millenium. 

“Hail to the land shadowing with wings which is beyond 
the rivers of Ethiopia ... All ye inhabitants of the world 
and ye dwellers on the earth, see ye when he lifteth up an ensign 
[emblem or flag] on the mountains . . . ”—Isaiah 18:1-3. 

“Let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph [his de- 
scendants| and upon the top of the head of him that separated 
from his brethren.—Deut. 33:16. 

“Thine eyes . . . shall behold the land that is very far 
off—Isaiah 33:17. 

“No weapon that is formed [by those without—mark this] 
against thee shall prosper . . . ”"—Jsaiah 54:17. 

America is this “land that is very far off,” this new land, 
“shadowing with wings,” and no weapon shall be potent to 
destroy the country except that forged by the citizens within. 

The wisdom that permitted the discovery to the children of 
Joseph and that guided the true sons of these settlers in the 
drafting of the Constitution, is the same that promised through 
the mouth of Jesus, the Nazarene, that another should come to 
manifest the Law, and no mistake is possible. Now the enemies 


SONS OF GOD 39 





within the land “shadowing with wings” have arrogated to 
themselves the divine right to interfere with (forge a weapon 
against) the Constitution that was drafted through the instru- 
mentality of the Divine Wisdom, and to defeat the Divine pur- 
pose or the Divine incentive which resulted in the discovery of 
the land “beyond the rivers of Ethiopia” and the formulation 
of the Law which should govern that land. As a consequence 
of this there is bitter discontent throughout the Nation, consum- 
mate injustice, a colossal misdirection of energy and the vast 
funds of the people, a gradual restriction of their Divine rights 
and personal privileges, a decay of virile manhood, a coarsen- 
ing of refinement in God’s mothers—women—and a lack of 
Personal Responsibility. Instead of man being the master of 
his fate, he is becoming not only the cringing weakling in the 
embrace of fate but likewise the chattel of every self-constituted 
political henchman. The condition of Jerusalem, the holy, over 
which the Master-Teacher wept at his advent, was as nothing 
in comparison with the pitiful state of ‘“God’s selected” child- 
ren in otherwise glorious America and, the age being ripe, the 
conditions reaching the brink of destruction, the second pro- 
phecy—that of the coming of a Messenger—is about to be ful- 
filled. Men shall be unmercifully chastised and their evils held 
before their face in letters of fire, by day and by night, as, once 
before, the pillar of fire went before the children of Israel. 

Thus comes Manisis and after him will follow the scourges 
which will lay heavy hands on the wickedness of man. 


Four~Fold Nature of Man 


In his fourfold nature of body, spirit, mind and Soul, man 
is an epitome of the universe. Potentially, he is the Divine 
Creation in miniature, termed the microcosm and, consequently, 
the “little god” and the “little world.” Man is the climax, the 
culmination of forces which for ages have been seeking expres- 
sion. How to develop his forces, bring them into activity and 
then express them harmoniously, is the problem before him. To 
use his forces constructively as intended by the Divine Purpose, 
and only in the service of mankind, is the ideal that he must 
be led to comprehend and then choose for himself. To engage 
his possibilities and use his powers in obedience to the Creative 
(building, constructive) Law, will result in the elevation of his 
entire being. Conversely, to pervert his forces and divert these 
possibilities into channels of error and sin (1. e., wrong use, 


destructive action) brings about loss and final destruction. 


The Sons of God ‘and Their Teachings 


HE teachings of Jesus, whom we have termed the 
Master-Teacher, deal largely with the Son of man and 
the Son of God. According to the Biblical narrative, 
the Son of man may become the Son-of God. The 
Son of man is the issue or progeny of earthly parents 
and is endowed with the capability of becoming the 
Son of the Heavenly Father. 

The Soul of man is from the Father and was created in 





the beginning of time. Though the Soul is housed or embedded 
- in the Son of man, through the awakening of the mind to that 
which is beyond the material and mortal, and through the proper 
application of the knowledge resulting from this awakening, 
the Soul may be brought into manifestation and the Son of man 
thereby became the Son of God. 

In his teachings the Master-Teacher deals almost exclusive- 
ly with the possibility in man—in all men—to attain this goal. 

The Son of man assuredly may become the Son of God. 
This is the central idea clearly outlined throughout the four 
gospels. Nowhere is it expressed more clearly than in the con- 
versation between Nicodemus and the Master-Teacher who 
plainly stated to Nicodemus the fundamental truth, that man, 
-in addition to the life born with the flesh and which comes 
to him from earthly father and mother, also may establish with- 
in himself and attain consciousness of a greater life—that Life 
of the Soul which results through the Divine awakening. 


42 SONS OF GOD 





The dual nature of man’s existence clearly is indicated by 
the Master-Teacher’s statement: ‘Verily, verily I say unto thee, 
Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit [Soul], he 
cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of 
the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit [that 
which comes from God] is spirit [belongs to God]. Marvel not 
that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again [anew or from 
above |.” —St. John 3:5-7. 

The body with its attendant personality enters the world 
of action at birth and is the man of flesh. At that same moment 
of physical birth, the functioning body receives from the Spirit 
(God) a part of His spirit and this may become the Soul. The 
body, all men possess; the Soul, the awakening and Illumina- 
tion of the Spirit (Spark of God), is the result of the rebirth— 
the coming into a new life. 

Man cannot avoid the first birth; it is due to the acts of 
those who become his parents. The second birth must be 
brought about through conscious, deliberate effort. 

The mind results from the combination or coming together 
of body, spirit (1. e., life) and the Divine Spark. Through this 
mind which is to the body as the ether in the air is to the world, 
the faculties of the body, including the thoughts and desires of 
the mentality, can be made so to function that the Divine Spark 
within, like the mind, can be brought into consciousness. When 
this consciousness is attained, then the rebirth, the baptism of 
the spirit, here meaning that of the Holy Ghost, takes place. 
It is at this moment that the overshadowing Spirit or Soul of 
the Universal Father, meets and blends with the individual 
spirit (Soul Spark) in man and Soul Consciousness is the 


SONS OF GOD 43 





result. 

The Master-Teacher did not qualify his statement that 
unless man be born again or anew, that is, unless he is baptized 
by the Spirit or the Fire of the Holy Ghost, he cannot enter the 
kingdom or the sphere of Consciousness. Contrary to the teach- 
ings of all dogmatic schools, neither the Forgiveness of Sin, the 
Vicarious Atonement nor Justification by Faith, is mentioned 
by the Master-Teacher. The sincere seeker after the saving 
truth will do well to bear this in mind and also to remember 
that honest men are perfectly willing to pay their own debts: 
dishonest men—those who shirk their debts—sins—on to other 
shoulders—have not the slightest hope of being able to “enter 
into” or attain the state of Consciousness known as the kingdom 
of heaven. “Ye must be born again.’ Surely none should mis- 
take the meaning of words so simple and all-inclusive. 

For almost two thousand years men have read the Bible 
but, with rare exceptions, they have been unwilling to accept 
the evident interpretation. They have permitted themselves to 
be lulled into a sense of security by the expounding of an op- 
posing dogma formulated by men of selfish motive, men who, 
unlike the Master-Teacher, have been unwilling to pass through 
the years of training required to bring about in themselves the 
Awakening to Soul Consciousness, the rebirth or baptism by the 
Spirit. 

As a matter of historical record, we herewith state that the 
formulators of the doctrines which set forth the possibility of 
the Forgiveness of Sin otherwise than through the payment by 
the sinner of the “uttermost farthing,” the Vicarious Atonement 
and Justification by Faith, were men who had entered the School 





44 SONS OF GOD 


of the Initiates but who had been found wanting and had been 
expelled. In their innermost nature these men were like those 
of the countless ranks of men and women who have since lived 
and more or less blindly accepted these degrading doctrines 
which teach such total dishonesty of heart and Soul, namely, 
that the guilty could turn over to another, believed already to be 
heavily laden, whatever debt of sin they might incur, and that 
he could and would pay their debt for them by the blood (life) 
of his own Soul. 

In ordinary life, an individual who refuses to pay his 
debts is considered untrustworthy and dishonest; and he who 
would permit another, much less favored than himself and 
possibly already suffering from want, to meet his indebtedness, 
would be considered worse than a weakling—even on a par 
with those unmentionable beings in the form of men who accept 
and apply to their own benefit, the receipts of the courtesan . 
Can we wonder that Manisis, the Messenger of the New Age, 
boldly proclaims the doctrine that only Man glorified, that is to 
say, man who accepts all the responsibilities of the form he 
bears, can be born the second time—attain Consciousness of 
the Soul 

Acceptation of the mere letter of religion—the inculcations 


and thus enter the kingdom of heaven? 





of the Master-Teacher—is productive of evil in itself but when 
even the letter itself is perverted, we should not wonder that less 
than one in a million born have attained Cosmic Consciousness 
—the Illumination of Soul or baptism by the Holy Ghost (Fire) 
and thus become worthy to enter the kingdom or heaven. 
Undoubtedly the Master-Teacher was aware that those who 
would propound the doctrines he taught would pervert them for 


SONS OF GOD 45 





their own benefit and establish a temporal church instead of the 
spiritual temple which he had in mind—otherwise he would not 
have promised his hearers a second coming. Just as certain is 
it that all who have listened to and accepted these perverted 
teachings, have felt in their hearts that they were allowing 
themselves to be deluded and ensnared, otherwise they would 
not have been looking for this second coming when, as a fact, 
his most positive statement clearly taught that the kingdom of 
heaven might be attained without such a sacrifice on his part, if 
so be they were willing to obey the Divine Law and as a conse- 
quence receive the baptism of the Spirit (the Soul) by the Holy 
Spirit or Holy Ghost (Fire). But it is doubtful if any of the 
millions of those now living or who have lived and accepted the 
delusive doctrines without actually believing them, expected 
that the second coming, in the New Dispensation, so completely 
would tear aside the veil of delusion and illusion, and so fear- 
lessly would call dishonesty by its right name. 

As men accept the truth that makes free and sincerely begin 
to live the life so that the Soul can gain its consciousness, then 
will this Soul, this Spark from God himself, make itself heard 
through the “still small voice” speaking within, and a knowl- 
edge, a realization, within the center of man’s being will be the 
result, assuring the possessor that Consciousness of Soul is at 
last a fact. 

In the third chapter of St. John’s gospel, verse eight, the 
Master-Teacher is made to say: ‘The wind bloweth where it 
listeth and thou hearest the sound thereof but canst not tell 
whence it cometh or whither it goeth; so is every one that is 
_ born of the Spirit [reborn in the Soul].” This is the “still small 


46 SONS OF GOD 





voice” which is given birth by the Soul’s Awakening and coming 
into Consciousness. 

The Master-Teacher did much more than expostulate with 
his hearers in regard to sublime doctrines: he pointed the Way 
in unmistakable terms. Not only did he instruct his disciples 
(students) and tell his hearers that only through the second 
baptism, that of the Spirit (Soul), would they be able to enter 
into the kingdom of heaven (sphere or plane of peace, righteous- 
ness, contentment) but he gave them the method as well. 

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even 
so must the Son of man be lifted up.” 

The serpent, in the lesser mysteries, and it is with these we 
deal here, always was representative or symbolic of all that was 
low and debased in man. ‘Thus the evil passions, such as 
hatred, anger, malice, resentment, envy and others of like nature, 
were symbolized by or compared to the low, creeping thing. 
Moses “lifted up” the serpent and it then became symbolic of 
the exalted, the strong, the virile. Jesus pointed out that it is 
not sufficient for man merely to believe but that he actually must 
lift up, that he must take these serpents and transmute them and 
thus establish the tender emotions of forgiveness, compassion, 
tenderness, love, and place them on the pedestal of Justice which 
so long has been dethroned. 

Now when this exaltation occurs, then the serpent hitherto 
creeping in the dust of man’s debased nature is transformed into 
the Dove of Peace on the Tree of Life, and this is symbolic of 
the Soul in its flight toward the Infinite. Thus it is literally 
and dynamically true that when the son of the flesh lifts up the 
serpent, the serpent changes both its nature and its form, be- 


SONS OF GOD 47 
a nt aS at seal 


coming the Dove of Light, the Soul in Illumination, the Winged 
Globe—a perfect sphere; and thus it is that the baptism by the 
Spirit, the flight into the realms of heaven, is attained. 

The Son of man is the man of flesh; his nature is of the 
earth; his desires are debasing. Hatred, unjust anger, malice, 
envy, resentment, unforgiveness—all these seem “natural” to 
the man who still manifests or represents the serpent. Before 
he can come even into an inkling of what is meant by the attain- 
ment of a Son of God, he must free himself of all these evil 
passions, not through destructive processes but by the process of 
transmutation. As he does this and as the exalting emotions 
are born, the Holy Fire will be lighted on the Altar within and 
the baptism of the Spirit (Fire) prepared for him. 

He who proceeds to lift up the serpent which is within all 
men, for it is born with and is a part of the flesh, he who of 
deliberate choice and purpose—will—changes his thoughts and 
desires and gradually harmonizes them with the Divine Law— 
this man ultimately will grow into a Son of God and will come 
to recognize the Father. He who exalts and prizes above every- 
thing else, the Divine Spark within himself, and sincerely be- 
lieves that eternal life is found only in the Divine element, will 
be certain to come into harmony with all of life and thereby 
bring into consciousness the Spark of Divinity and so Immor- 
talize his Soul. 

“Verily, I say unto you, except a man be born of water and 
of the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” 

This is the doctrine of regeneration succinctly stated. To 
be born of water is to become aware of the fact that the earthly 
or carnal life, is not the true, lasting or immortal life. Becom- 


48 SONS OF GOD 


Rabete teas Oia ei eS ee SRS NE EN ER Rs os 
ing thoroughly convinced of this fact is termed the awakening 
of the mind; it is the Baptism with Water, the “John,” the 
“voice . . . crying in the wilderness” to arouse us into action. 
He who is aroused to this knowledge, who listens to John and 
then will begin to use his awakened mind in the building of 
his Soul, is on the Path. All his thoughts and desires will be- 
come changed. In place of seeking carnal pleasures which 
gradually destroy, he will seek the highest things of life. He 
will begin to use his mental forces in constructive thinking. 
Out of this constructive thinking will grow an activity harmon- 
izing with the thoughts, and the re-birth of the Spirit will result, 
culminating in Illumination of Soul. 

This then is the process of the development of the Divine 
Spark, the Divine Spirit which is in man, which always has 
been there throughout the centuries but, due to delusive teach- 
ings, has been kept dormant and unborn. 

Let none mistake: The divinity is within all men; it only 
awaits the awakening or rebirth; then it becomes the Christ. 
It was of this type of man (or men) that the Master-Teacher 
spoke when he said: ‘Ye are the temple of the living God;” 
and again, “I am in the Father and ye in me and I in you.” 
Without conscious and deliberate Soul development, man cannot 
by any possibility or accident “be born again,” nor, in fact, can 
he be the temple of the living God, for God can dwell only in 
that which has been purified and exalted and prepared to receive 
the Divine Nature. 

According to the Christic and New Dispensation interpre- 
tation, water represents truth (actuality) intellectually received 


or accepted. Unless we first accept—admit—receive—consider 


SONS OF GOD 49 





—a statement or doctrine we shall not believe it; unless we be- 
lieve in it, we shall not attempt to live or act accordingly; and, 
without action, results are impossible. When the mind accepts 
a truth, it is no longer an altogether mortal mind, for by the 
acceptance, which is an acknowledgement, it has awakened to 
a higher understanding and to that degree is less bound to the 
carnal nature and more open to the reception of the Divine in 
nature. 

Awakening to the wisdom of a constructive law will be an 
incentive to the mind to hold such thoughts as will help further 
to awaken itself to the Divine Nature. Such thoughts will help 
to free the Soul from the impurity surrounding it and the de- 
velopment of the Divine Spark will commence. This is the 
assurance that man has begun the building of a Soul that shall 
become Immortal. 

The new birth, which results in Consciousness of the Soul 
or the Baptism by Fire, signifies that the mind has applied the 
constructive truths and that he actually has commenced to live 
life and discontinued, at least to a perceptible degree, the living 
of the life of death. Through a continuation of the new mode, 
will result the victory of the Soul over matter and the unholy 
(unhealthy, incomplete, less-than the-whole) desires of the car- 
nal self; and the Soul therefore will transform the body into 
an instrument for the accomplishment of the work which all 
men are given to do on the earth plane. He who is now the 
awakened man becomes master of the body. As he gains this 
mastery over the instrument, he also frees himself from slavery 
to personalities, conditions and circumstances over which he 


formerly had no control whatever, 





50 SONS OF GOD 





It is this mastery of the lesser self that awakens the dor- 
mant faculties of man’s being, opens the inner senses, gives 
him an intuitive insight into truth and offers a direct communion 
of Soul with Soul. Man thus becomes the Initiate, the Christic 
manifestation, a Manisis, the Son of God. It is such a state of 
consciousness the Master-Teacher had in mind when he said: 
“Ye are the temple of the living God.” 

The symbolic baptism by water is an intellectual baptism 
only. It is admittedly highly important as it is the awakening 
of the mind and the first step toward the accomplishment of 
the Sublime Work for whtch purpose man is on earth. Baptism 
by the Spirit, by the Fire or the Holy Ghost (all synonymous 
terms), refers to the complete re-birth, the coming into Con- 
sciousness of the Soul, the attainment of Christhood or Sonship 
with the Father. The awakening of the Divine Spark within 
man through the direction of the intelligence and the will, leads 
ultimately to a complete regeneration of the whole (holy) being. 
Through this there will come to man the power to do all things 
in harmony with the Law and it was of this state that Paul spoke 
when he said: “I can do all things through Christ which 
strengtheneth me.” 

While man lives according to the desires of the body, satis- 
fying the carnal, earthly being, he builds unto death, for in the 
flesh there can be no continued existence. When he learns to 
obey the Voice of the great within, then does he begin to build 
the great temple, the “house not made with hands, eternal in 
the heavens.” 

In speaking of the rebirth by water and by Spirit, the 
Master-Teacher made allusion to a double transformation of the 





SONS OF GOD 51 





body. This regeneration must take place now, here on earth, 
and before man passes through the stage termed death. If man 
does not succeed in becoming “born again” of both water and 
the Spirit (Fire), while in the flesh, there will be no opportunity 
for him to accomplish this after he leaves the body. Rebirth 
into the flesh (reincarnation) will be the only solution of his 
problem. Jesus made this an emphatic statement: ‘“Ye must 
be born again,” even as he who had become the Christ (so he 
taught)—the typical regenerate being—had been born again, of 
water (under John) and of the Spirit (through his own life and 
effort). 

We read that Jesus was “born of a Virgin” This clearly 
indicates that he was conceived not “in sin” but in purity, of 
pure Love, which is God’s passion. The act based on love and 
carried out in love is sinless: note John’s declaration that ‘(God 
is Love.” -It follows that whoso has most of love has most of 
God. By “love” we mean love—not lust. Yet, although he was 
conceived and born of pure love, it was as necessary for Jesus 
to accept John’s teachings and the Baptism of water and, 
through the application of the mental powers and processes (the 
water) to awaken the building forces within himself and thereby 
develop and bring into manifestation the Soul, and thus attain 
the Baptism of Fire or the Holy Ghost, as it is necessary for all 
those of the human family who, like him, would gain Soul Con- 
sciousness and become Christic, a Son of God. 

Jesus constantly taught the lifting up or exaltation of the 
Son of man above all else—not merely in words of praise to an 
invisible God but through constructive thoughts, elevating de- 
sires and worthy acts to raise up all that is human and mortal. 


52 SONS OF GOD 





He was emphatic in his inculcations to all, that “when ye have 


lifted up [or honored] the Son of man, then shall ye know that 
. . . Ido nothing of myself . . . For I spake not from myself; 


but the Father which sent me gave me a commandment what I 
should say and what I should speak and I know that his com- 
mandment is life eternal . . . ” The Jews, not comprehending 
his meaning, asked, “ . . . how sayest thou, the Son of man 
must be lifted up? Who is this Son of man? And Jesus 
answered them: Yet a little while is the light 7m you. Walk 
while ye have the lght, that darkness overtake you not; and 
he that walketh in the darkness, knoweth not whither he goeth.”’ 

This light, to a lesser or greater degree, is in all men. It is 
that which the Philosophers and Initiates of all ages have 
called the Divine Spark, the voice of conscience, which, to the 
degree of its growth and development, speaks unto all men. He 
who possesses but a little of this light and wisely uses it, shall] 
receive (develop) a greater light and this process shall continue 
until he has all light necessary for his Immortalization. 

On the other hand, those who neglect the small light, the 
“one talent,” in their possession, shortly will find they have 
lost it and henceforth shall dwell in darkness. It is both a 
natural and a Divine Law that a faculty neglected is a faculty 
that sooner or later dies out. 

Not in any single instance did Jesus bid his hearers worship 
him. It was left for the established (orthodox—creed-bound) 
churches to do this, centuries after the beginning of the Chris- 
tian era. The Master-Teacher had no desire for self-aggrandize- 
‘ment or personal laudation. Like all Initiates, he was modest, 
easily satisfied, thinking only of the glory of the whole rather 


SONS OF GOD a) 
Se 


than the praise of one. He adjured the masses to follow the 
light—4. e., obey the Law—which is in man and he taught them 
“the Way” and how to find it. “I speak nothing of myself,’ 
was his constant reiteration. “Lift up the Son of man (that is 
the mortal, carnal, dying self),” he said and plainly told the 
people that he was not speaking of or for himself but as the 
Messenger of Him who had sent him and in whose service he 
was engaged. 

All men are the sons of man, born of the flesh and living 
in the wholly material. That the sons of men may come to 
know the Christ, they must of themselves lift up themselves, 
must of themselves change themselves from sense men to Soul 
men. Carnal desires must not be destroyed but transmuted, 
lifted up, exalted, refined and thus become Soulified—Spiritual- 
ized—Immortalized. 

One aspect or quality of the light that is in man, is the 
conscience. ‘The voice of conscience speaks to all men more or 
less clearly unless it has been totally destroyed through continued 
acts of evil. It is essential that man should listen for and heed 
this voice which is his light. If he does this, then gradually 
the light that leads the way—the Voice—will become strong 
and ultimately always will be with him. 

To the direct question, “What is meant by lifting up the 
Son of man?” the Master-Teacher answered in substance, ‘“To 
live in the light that is with [iz] man.” No instruction could 
be more plain or simple. In this, as in all else, the Master- 
Teacher’s instructions were simplicity itself. Within all men 
there is an accuser, a something not generally defined, which 


quickly creates an uneasy feeling when thoughts, desires and 


54 SONS OF GOD 


acts are degrading or destructive. This is the light that is in 
man and it is the Voice that must be obeyed. 

The spirit of all true religions consists in this one funda- 
mental: To live according to the best of one’s comprehension. 
No man who has attained a stage above the animal plane can 
commit a wrong and truthfully claim that the light within him 
sanctioned it, for the light comes from the Divine Spark and the 
Divine Spark comes from God and God smiles not on evil. 
The light, which is the life, leads to the Christos. He who fol- 
lows the light assuredly follows the Christ, the Manisis, and 
with each good deed, kindly act, loving thought and compas- 
sionate service, the Christ child in the manger (the body) grows 
stronger, until at last manhood is attained and man has become 
(glorified) the Son of God. 

Dealing yet further with this light which is in men and in 
which they are to walk, in Luke 11:35, the Master-Teacher is 
made to say: ‘Take heed therefore that the light which is in 
thee be not darkness.” And in Matthew 6:23, “If therefore the 
light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!” 

The light is darkened only through gross thoughts, de- 
structive desires and carnal, lustly acts. If we follow the light 
to the best of our ability, then it will become stronger and 
brighter and a certain guide to all that is desirable and lasting. 
To “follow the light” means to encourage and attain unto pure 
and idealistic thoughts, desires that are ennobling and refining, 
and deeds that harm neither the self nor others but ever have a 
tendency to lead both the self and the race onward in the 
path of true progress. For be it remembered, man is not suf- 
ficient unto himself nor can he save himself alone. So long as 


SONS OF GOD 55 





one Soul is in travail, no other Soul can attain absolute freedom. 

If the thoughts be gross and carnal, the desires ignoble 
and delusive, and the acts such as ultimately bring harm to the 
self and others—though possibly they may bring temporary 
profit and pleasure—then pain, loss, misery and sorrow assured- 
ly will follow; the light within us will be darkness and, in the 
end, how great is that darkness!—not, mark you, because God 
punishes but because of the eternal operation of the Law of 
Compensation 

Long before the time of such Master-Teachers as the Man 
of Nazareth and Apollonius of Tyana, all true teachers and 
Initiators inculcated the key-note of truth, namely that the light 
within man which must be brought into Divinity and manifesta- 
tion, is the Immortalized Soul. Throughout the ages, this has 
been the subject, the aim and the end of Rosicrucianism. Trans- 
mutation is based solely on this great operation. Brahma, the 
gifted Jewish prophets, Confucius, Socrates, Marcus Aurelius 
and others taught this as a philosophy. When man obeys the 
Divine Law and his light, he is assuredly and unmistakably on 
the Path that leads to Sonship. 

The religious and philosophical teachings of all ages, all 
the systems of thought with which mankind is acquainted—that 
of the Hebrews, of Confucius, Buddha, Brahma, Osiris, the 
Grecian sages—all are concerned with the harmonious regula- 
tion of man’s life and action with the Divine Law. 

The entire intellectual activity of man must be centered in 
one thing sf it is to attain the highest degree of development. 
That one thing is the working out of reason, of the ideals of 
what we term, for want of a better word, good. Reason, which 





56 SONS OF GOD 


should enlighten life and guide our conduct, is not illusion; it 
cannot be explained away. ‘Follow reason, illuminated by the 
Divine light within, and attain welfare, not alone of self but 
also of others,” always has been the doctrine of the true teachers 
who have had the welfare of the human family at heart. 

Instructing the people in the Divine Law, the Master- 
Teacher gradually led them up to a presentation of the truth, as 
applicable to their thought and action, as it was given to him. 
He maintained silence concerning himself unless directly ques- 
tioned. He told the people that the kingdom of heaven ‘was at 
hand (here and now) and that the Messiah would shortly come. 
Now, after the passage of many centuries, how absurd and un- 
reasonable to believe that he meant other than that the kingdom 
of heaven would “come” to those who were willing to obey the 
Divine Law as he taught it, to those who would proceed to 
follow the light and develop the source of the light, thus bring- 
ing the Soul into Illumination and thereby actually entering into 
the Kingdom of Heaven within the Grand Temple of their 
own being! 

No one ever has found or ever shall find or “enter into” the 
kingdom of heaven unless he first obeys the Law and, through 
such obedience, passes through the process of regeneration and 
thus attains, in culmination, the state of Conscious Individual- 
ization. 

As already stated, the kingdom of heaven did not “come” 
in the time of the Master-Teacher or his immediate followers, 
nor since, to anyone in an outer, material sense; it HAS 
become an accomplished fact in those who have faithfully 
and consistently followed the exposition of the Divine Law. 


SONSOFGOD 57 





And it shall be attained by all who now or in the future will 
live in harmony with this same Law and make the necessary 
effort to become worthy of the Illumination. 

In this connection should be borne in mind the cryptic 
saying of the Master-Teacher: ‘Ye are the temples of the 
living God.” Where can be found the Kingdom of Heaven 
but where the Father dwells? And did he not say: “Ye are 
the temple of the living God’”—“TI in you and ye in me?” In 
- other words: ‘The body of man, when regenerated, becomes— 
is transformed into—the temple of the Father. Through this 
regeneration, the Christ takes possession and, when the Christos 
is established then God enters and the individual has become, 
by right of choice and by deliberate effort—not by a life of dam- 
nation ending in a “confession of faith’—the actual Son of 
God. 

Undoubtedly Matthew Arnold had this idea and ideal in 
mind when he penned the beautiful and prophetic lines: 


“Once read thy own breast aright, 

And thou hast done with fears; 
Man gets no other light, 

Search he a thousand years; 
Sink in thyself! There ask 

What ails thee—at that shrine.” 

Within man is the source or fountain of all there is, all 
that he may need and all that sane mortal can desire. Within 
him is the source of salvation, the fuel for the flame which is to 
be kindled into the Immortal Light. Before he is capable of 
finding the path to the “well of living water,” he must arouse 
and use his mind and his reasoning power to build up the 
temple so that the light within him may shine forth and point 


out “‘the way, the truth and the life.” 





58 SONS OF GOD 





Since time immemorial men have sought knowledge, hap- 
piness, health, success, peace and contentment, outside of them- 
selves. They expect to find these things in the world of sense, 
of self-gratification and of possession. They have been uni- 
versally and bitterly disappointed. All that is worthwhile and 
lasting, all that can bring peace and contentment—lasting hap- 
piness—must come from man’s great inner storehouse. When 
he thoroughly learns this lesson, when he begins to direct his 
thoughts and desires aright, when he commences his search in 
the right direction, namely away from the without or the realm 
cf sense and flesh where there is little less than illusion, and 
toward the within or realm of reality, THEN shall he begin to 
realize that his “dreams” were based on reality and know that 


Browning sang truth: 


“Truth is within ourselves: it takes no rise 
From outward things, whate’er you may believe. 
There is an inmost center in us all 

Where truth abides in fulness; but around, 
Wall upon wall, the gross flesh hems it in.” 


In the CENTER of our being is to be found the Soul, the 
Source of all truth, and the Christos, wherein will come the 
Father. ‘Toward this CENTER we must direct our search. But 
before we can drink of this fountain of life and wisdom, which 
is as a spring of clear and living water, we must break through 
“wall upon wall” of “the gross flesh” that “hems it in;” we 
must clear away the debris of a thousand thousand years of 
error and disobedience to the Law! Thus we are admonished 
that the carnal self, which is the Son of man, must be lifted up. 
This necessitates a change, a transmutation of the gross sub- 


stance into the fine and is possible of accomplishment only as 


SONS OF GOD 59 


we listen to the Divine Law as set forth and illustrated to us 
by those who know because they have lived the Life. We may 
have the most illustrious teacher available, still we shall be 
unable to find the fountain of “living water” unless we are 
willing to obey the Law. Just so long as the unhallowed desires 
of the carnal man—called by Paul ‘the natural man’’—are 
gratified, just that long will the gross flesh continue to hide the 
Source of Life, Light and Love—the Rosicrucian Mystery. 

In the Epilogue upon An Honest Man’s Fortune (Fletcher 
and Beaumont) are these true words: 


“Man is his own star, and the soul that can 
Render an honest and a perfect man, 
Commands all light, iall influence, all fate: 
Nothing to him falls early or too late.’ 


These words portray the conviction that we are the masters 
of our fate; that the Soul, once awakened, established and 
Illuminated, is the STAR in man’s heaven that leads him direct- 
ly to all things worth while and that through the instrumental- 
ity of the body, which has become an obedient servant, all things 
will become possible. The body—to use another figure—is the 
ship, the Soul is the Captain of the ship; there is no uncharted 
sea over which this Captain with this Ship, may not safely 
sail! 

Unquestionably the enlightened man is the master of his 
fate. It rests entirely with ourselves as to what we shall be, 
what we shall do or refuse to do. Upon ourselves rests squarely 
the responsibility of choice and action and, according to our 
selection, so shall it be unto us. None is exempt from this 
Law; to none is the choice denied. 


All masters of the past who succeeded in attaining Con- 


60 SONS OF GOD 
a 

sciousness of Soul, have taught the same great principles of 
truth, though possibly in different terms and with illustrations 
and symbols fitting the time and the people whom they taught. 
These masters have been of different walks in life: Here a 
lonely carpenter; there a dreamy poet; here a poor cobbler; there 
a tiller of the soil; some have been men learned in the letter of 
the Law; others have been giants in intellect; yet still others 
either poor in the world’s goods or rich in possession. One and 
all, these masters inculcated the one sublime and fundamental 
truth: Within man is to be un-earthed the potency through 
which he can remake himself, and the substance which he can 


transmute and raise to Sonship with God. 









During the ministry of the Master-Teacher—who, by the 
way, was known neither as “Jesus” nor as the “Christ,” during 
his sojourn on earth—his followers were whispering among 
themselves: ‘This is he!’ and repeating the pregnant statement 
to others. But the Master, with gentle dignity and the right 
reserve that always characterizes one who actually has attained 
Illumination (Initiation), called himself simply, “the Son of 


? 


man.” He would not admit that he had become more than 
other men. To his statement that he was the Son of man, he 
added, ‘The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests 
but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.” 
Influenced by the popular Jewish tradition concerning a 
Messiah who was to come, the hopes of the disciples conceived 
of the “kingdom of heaven” as a political government to be 
established of which the Master-Teacher would be crowned king 
and they, selected as his ministers. They asked him: “Lord, 


wilt thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 





SONS OF GOD 61 


To combat this widespread and altogether false idea and 
radically change it and at the same time reveal to them the true 
idea of a ‘“Messiah”—of spiritual royalty; to communicate to 
them the sublime truth of the Father, namely, the supremacy of 
the Illuminated Soul, the mysterious method of uniting all Souls 
with the Invisible; to show to them and all mankind by his 
works, his life and even his death how empty he was of worldly 
possessions yet how sincerely he sought to become worthy of 
being a Son of God; to convey to all mankind a conviction that 
they, even like himself, could join in the Sublime Work if they 
so desired—finally, to interpret to them, when they could com- 
prehend it, the entire Mystery of the Divine process of Ilumina- 
tion and of becoming Soul Conscious: this was the work the 
Master-Teacher set himself to do. 

The Son of man and the Son of God are one. The Son 
of man is the Alpha—the beginning; the Son of God is the 
Omega—the end of the Work. According to the teachings of 
the Master-Teacher, the highest manifestation of God is that 
individual who in constitution, form, intelligence, development 
and works (acts and deeds) has attained most nearly to the 
imaging of the Universal Creator; that individual whose facul- 
ties, through obedience to the Divine Law, have become most 
like those of the Father. 

Why is it then that we, potential Sons of God, do not 
know the Father? Let us read the answer in Isaiah 59:2-11. 


“Your iniquities have separated between 
you and your God, and your sins have hid his 
face from you that he will not hear. 

“For your hands are defiled with blood and 
your fingers with iniquity; your lips hath spoken 
lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness. 





62 SONS OF GOD 





“None calleth for justice nor any pleadeth 
for truth; they trust in vanity and speak lies; 
they conceive mischief and bring forth in- 
iquity. .. 

“. . . their works are works of iniquity and 
the act of violence is in their hands. 

“Their feet run to evil and they make haste 
to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are 
thoughts of iniquity; desolation and destruction 
are in their paths. ... whosoever goeth there- 
in doth not know peace. 

“Therefore is judgment far from us, neither 
doth righteousness overtake us; we wait for 
light but behold obscurity; for brightness, but 
we walk in darkness. 

“We grope for the wall like the blind, yes, 
we grope as if we had no eyes; we stumble at 
noon day as in the twilight; among them that 
are lusty we are as dead men.” 


This indictment against the faults and frailties of man 
might have been written by a prophet of today, so well does it 
delineate many, though by no means all of the sins of the 
present time. The author succinctly states a few of the reasons 
why the men of that time did not know God—why man remains 
the poor human-shaped weakling, the victim of fate, the slave 
of every passion that offers the possibility of a moment’s pleas- 
ure without a thought of the cost to body, mind and Soul. 

Manisis, Messenger of the New Dispensation, effectually 
has summed up many of the modern weaknesses and passions 
(sins) which are retarding the spiritual growth of the race as 
a whole and which, unless there is a great change within a short 
time, ultimately will help to destroy the present civilization, 
the supremacy of the white man. 


“The hands of thy ‘brethren are defiled with 
the blood of thy Father’s creatures which are of 
lesser stature than man, whereby to satisfy the 
vanity born of their shallowness.” 


Mark the wholesale killing of the fur-bearing animals, not 


SONS OF GOD 63 





because they are destructive to the life and property of man, not 
because of any necessity for food, which would be sane reasons 
but to satisfy the vanity of the wearers, the dictates of fashion, 
or for the purpose of creating envy in those not fortunate 


enough to be able to indulge similarly. 


“The Souls of thy brethren are guilty of 
shedding the blood of others of God’s children 
without the sanction of the Law, that they may 
profit in this world’s goods, gain temporal power 
and set themselves in high places.” 


Here is a direct reference to many phases of the late war. 
The shedding of blood not sanctioned by the law has reference 
to any part in war which is not necessary for the protection of 
the weak—women and children. It may be argued that the late 
war, so far as America was concerned, was necessary; that the 
honor and freedom of American women and children were at 
stake. Manisis admits this but calls attention to and enumer- 


ates the criminal acts of many of those who remained at home: 


“Thy brethren sent many others of their 
brethren afield, neglectfully destroying them, and 
robbed these brethren and their families while 
they unrighteously showered luxuries and pre- 
ferment upon an infinitely greater number who 
remained at home. These, thy brethren, tore 
from the arms of fathers, mothers, brothers and 
sisters, aye, even of wives and children, not for 
thy Father’s sake but that they might them- 
selves be safe and protected, other brethren, 
and cast them into the maelstrom of hatred 
and destruction. And when the duty of these 
other brethren was done—many having gone to 
their Reward—and they returned home, their 
just earthly reward unlawfully was denied them. 
For all of these things, thy Father which is in 
heaven, shall sit in heavy judgment upon all who 
are guilty and the profits shall be accursed for 
time evermore. And the children, children’s 
children and yet other children, who shall bene- 
fit by these spoils of unjust men, shall be called 
upon to pay unto the uttermost farthing.” 


64 SONS OF GOD 





Thus has spoken my Father which is in 
heaven, unto me, his Messenger, that I should 
warn men to make restitution unto all those 
that suffered and were defrauded; or to the 
fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, wives and 
children of those who suffered, were maimed or 
destroyed.” 


LIBERAL EXPOSITION 
“Thy brethren [some of those, though by no means all, who 


remained at home and who were placed in positions of executive 
and directing power of one kind and another] sent many others 
of their brethren afield | overseas to fight], neglectfully destroying 
them, [supplying them with poor fare—foods either denatured 
in the process of manufacture or not sufficiently rich in sus- 
taining and building elements, and therefore criminal under the 
law of Nature and of God] and robbed these brethren and their 
families [allowed them a wage of approximately one dollar a 
day| while they unrighteously showered luxuries and preferment 
upon an infinitely greater number who remained at home [wages 
ranging from a few dollars to fabulous sums a day to workers in 
war material who were housed warmly and safely at home, suf- 
fered no denial whatever and were assured every human protec- 
tion; still others, in executive positions, and manufacturers, 
amassed vast fortunes as a result of their position or their spec- 
ulation in war material, which fortunes fundamentally were 
based on human carnage|. These, thy brethren, [those in power, 
enrollment corps and otherwise| tore from the arms of fathers, 
mothers, brothers and sisters, aye, even of wives and children, 
not for thy Father’s sake but that they themselves might be safe 
and protected, other brethren and cast them into the maelstrom 
of hatred and destruction. And when the duty of these other 
brethren was [nobly] done—after many had gone to their Re- 





SONS OF GOD 65 





ward—and they returned home, their just earthly reward [the 
spoils of the conquerors| was unlawfully denied them. [ Witness 
the general character of the reception to service men, the scandals 
of manufacturers, a notable instance being the harness makers, 
and of Bureaus formed ostensibly for the soldiers welfare;* 
the withholding of all profits made by those who had remained 
at home and engaged, in one way and another, in the manufac- 
ture of war material; the withholding of remuneration of any 
kind, while bonuses were being awarded ordinary workers even 
after the service men returned home.| For all of these things, 
thy Father which is in heaven, shall sit in heavy judgment 
upon all who are guilty and the profits shall be accursed for 
time evermore. And the children, children’s children and yet 
other children, who shall benefit by these spoils of unjust men, 
shall be called upon to pay to the uttermost farthing.” 

Thus has spoken my Father which is in heaven [acting 
through the Law of Compensation] unto me, his Messenger, that 
I should warn men to make restitution unto all those that suf- 
fered and were defrauded; or to the fathers, mothers, brothers, 
sisters, wives and children of those who suffered, were maimed 
or destroyed.” 


And it came to pass that the Lord again 
spake unto His Messenger, Manisis, saying: 

“Thy brethren have foolishly accepted two 
masters and now bow down to them in worship 
as to idols and false gods, and in their hearts 
and minds the image of the Father is replaced 
by these false gods. One of these masters of 
thy brethren is permitted to sacrifice the weak 
and innocent for their own profit and upon their 
heads shall be damnation. The other masters of 


*Vide the Veteran’s Bureau scandal and the conviction of 
Col. Charles R. Forbes of that bureau, Philadelphia Bulletin, 
January 31, 1925 and former issues, 


66 SONS OF GOD 





men cause fear and trembling in the rest of thy 
brethren. And these two masters and their 
slaves are in an unholy alliance and by this bond 
of selfishness have shackled those who are need- 
ful to them and have made vassals of them. 


And my Father spake unto me saying: 

“*My son, speak unto the children of men 
and warn them that yet a little while shall it be 
so. Men shall become yet more arrogant and 
in their pride seek to gain yet greater power 
over those who are needful to them. Then shall 
I, the Lord their God, sow wisdom in the hearts 
of my laborers and they shall hearken unto my 
Voice and shall fight fire as with fire: the fires 
of selfishness with the fires of righteousness. 
And they shall say unto the usurpers, Ye have 
caused us to bow down to your power; now shall 
we obey the Laws of our God and Nature, and 
we shall labor only for ourselves, and ye shall 
come to know the weight of the hand of the 
Lord until ye have learned the Law!” And it 
shall come to pass that the Lord in his righteous- 
ness, after hardening their hearts shall be with 
them and there shall be much suffering through- 
out the earth and great tribulations throughout 
the land. Then shall the many awaken to the 
light and shall cast off the shackles of their 
masters and shall form a bond of fellowship, 
each man thereafter doing according to the 
Laws of the Father, helping his brethren as need 
be. And it shall come to pass that my husband- 
men shall be justified. And wives and mothers 
shall be with their husbands and children and 
be blessed by all, and the children shall be bles- 
sings of the Lord, and the glory of the Lord 
shall come among men and satan be consigned 
to his doom.” 

Thus spake the Lord God Jehovah, Father 
of Light, unto his Messenger, Manisis. 


LIBERAL EXPOSITION 
“Thy brethren have foolishly [ignorantly] accepted two 


masters [and my Father who is in heaven 4s neither one of them] 
and now bow down to them in worship as to idols and false 
gods, and in their hearts and minds the image of the Father 
is replaced by these false gods, One of these [this class of | 


SONS OF GOD 67 





masters of thy brethren is permitted to sacrifice [exploit] the 
weak [women] and innocent [children] for their own profit and 
upon their heads shall be damnation [the penalty of the Divine 
—Compensatory—Law]. The other [class of] masters of men 
cause fear and trembling [unholy and unjust obedience| in the 
rest of thy brethren. [TMs is a direct reference to many of the 
organized labor unions, which, though ostensibly for the protec- 
tion and welfare of the workers or members, are destructive to 
the heart and Soul, in that they make machines of the members, 
reduce efficiency and responsibility and, in many cases, do not 
permit workers to do their best, because they limit these members 
to the amount of work they may do. God limits no man and 
when men, by rules and regulations, and with threats of all 
manner of punishment, do so, they defy and attempt to annul 
every Divine Law and destruction must follow. Moreover, they 
make manikins of men, in that the experienced, efficient and 
honest worker is, in many instances, paid no more than the non- 
experienced, careless, shiftless worker. This is an injustice in 
the sight of God and contrary to Law]. And these two [classes 
of| masters and their slaves [the many workers and the union 
bosses] are in an unholy alliance and by this bond of selfishness 
[ self-interest] have shackled those who are needful [whose 
products are essential] to them [the producers of food—actual 
necessities to all men] and have made vassals of them. 
And my Father spake unto me saying: 

“““My Son, speak unto the children of men and warn them, 
that yet a little while shall it be so. Men shall become yet 
more arrogant and in their pride seek to gain yet greater power 
over those who are needful to them. Then shall I, the Lord 


68 ; SONS OF GOD 





their God, sow wisdom [open their eyes| in the hearts of my 
laborers [all who produce actual necessities of life] and they 
shall hearken unto my Voice and shall fight fire with fire: the 
fires of selfishness [the steady encroachment of unjustly organized 
associations of every kind, be these produce exchanges, labor 
unions, legislative enactment, or other inimical associations] 
with the fires of righteousness [justice to themselves and there- 
fore to all men]. And they shall say unto. the usurpers, ‘Ye 
have caused us to bow down unto your power [laws, rules and 
regulations enacted to govern trade, and enforced against the 
producers of actual necessities by these others, through their vast 
majority|; now shall we obey the laws of our God and of 
Nature, and we shall labor only for ourselves | produce only for 
our own needs], and ye shall come to know the weight of the 
hand of the Lord [want] until ye have learned the Law [learned 
how to deal justly|!’ And it shall come to pass that the Lord 
in his righteousness, after hardening their hearts [the hearts of 
the producers of necessities| shall be with them and there shall 
be much suffering throughout the earth and great tribulations 
throughout the land. Then shall the many [the multitudes en- 
gaged in other than the production of food| awaken to the light 
[come into comprehension of the Law of Justice and equal ex- 
change] and shall cast off the shackles of their masters [the ex- 
ploiters of women and children, and arrogant self-interest 
bosses of various organizations| and shall form a bond of fel- 
lowship [brotherhood], each man thereafter doing according to 
the Laws of the Father [doing his best and thereby] helping his 
[less fortunate] brethren as need be. And it shall come to pass 
that my husbandmen shail be justified [be remunerated accord- 


SONS OF GOD 69 
errr eee ee a ee ee ee ee 


ing to their worth to the other class of workers]. And wives and 
mothers shall be with their husbands and children and be 
blessed by all [protected], and the children shall be blessings 
of the Lord [showing respect and honor to their parents and de- 
velop into men and women of honor], and the glory of the Lord 
[happiness and peace] shall come among men, and satan [sel- 
fishness and other evils] be consigned to his doom [the thousand 


years of peace on earth.]” 


And the Lord spake yet again unto his Mes- 
senger, Manisis, saying: 

“The lips of thy brethren continually speak 
lies in the hope of receiving benefit thereby 
until the truth is become a stranger unto them; 
and through the subtlety of speech do they rob 
one another whom they are commanded to love.” 


Never in the history of man has there been such universal 
and so gross misrepresentations as at the present day. In all 
walks of life, in every line of business, one is confronted with 
this condition. It is immaterial whether one enters the market 
place in search of food, or the marts of divers trade for silks 
and satins, misrepresentation is at once apparent and one be- 
comes aware that there is very little effort in hiding the fact, 
furthermore, that it is not actually considered an as act of lying. 

He who, in the sale or exchange of any commodity what- 
ever, misrepresents it, is guilty not only of lying but of deceit, 
fraud and of profiteering at the expense of the person who, 
under the Law, he has been commanded to love. 

In part, this condition described is due to the lack in re- 
ligious instructions. There has been a surfeit of such inculca- 
tions but these lacked in the two basic fundamentals which 
would have had a tendency to help man see the true light and 
instil honesty in his heart. These fundamentals are the eternal 





70 SONS OF GOD 


Laws known as Personal Responsibility and Law of Compen- 
sation. 

Thus far man unthinkingly has accepted the doctrine that 
his responsibility for deeds ranging from petty falsehoods to 
atrocious murder, could, through mere repentance for the deed 
and the asking for forgiveness, be thrown upon the shoulders 
of another and that this ended the affair, irrespective of what 
happened to the fellow creature whom he had wronged; and 
that he, by his mental acts of repentance and prayer, and with- 
out making reparation, thereafter would be free and not be 
called upon to compensate for the created indebtedness. Herein 
we find the nucleus of almost all crime in the world since man 
became a conscious, free-acting being. 

It is not more religion of which men stand in need but an 
honest and sincere interpretation of the true Laws of God. 
When men learn that the Law of Compensation never can be 
set aside—irrespective of how contrite they may be for their 
deed—and that ‘“‘with what measure ye meet it shall be measured 
to you again,” they will bethink themselves before they seek to 
take advantage of their fellow creatures. Knowing that an un- 
just profit at the expense of another, whether that other is 
aware of it or not, is in the nature of a loan which must be 
repaid, men of business sense will hesitate before continually 
making such loans, especially when aware that these loans may 
be “called in” when least expected or when they are unprepared 
to meet them. Misrepresentation, so universal in all business 
transactions, in fact, in all dealings between man and man, is 
a gross and deliberate form of deceit, falsehood and lying. 

What, may be asked, becomes of the forgiveness of sin 





SONS OF GOD oY 





(wrong) ? 

Neither the Law of Compensation nor of Personal Re- 
sponsibility in any way interferes with this. Let us consider a 
concrete instance: I ask for credit and give my promise to 
pay within a certain time. The one favoring me accepts my 
assurance as he would my bond and, having responsibilities of 
his own, expects me to keep my promise. This is merely a busi- 
ness transaction. At the time stipulated, I fail to appreciate the 
favor extended and, through my lack of responsibility, do not 
keep my promise, thereby embarrassing my creditor or causing 
him to forfeit a like promise. I have not.only sinned (broken 
a promise) but I have also caused him to do so and his will be 
a “righteous wrath.” I may become conscious of my wrong- 
doing (lack of appreciation of a responsibility is a sin) and 
may ask his pardon for the error on my part. He may gracious- 
ly forgive me but—note this carefully—his forgiveness does not 
im any way erase my indebtedness. Sins are sins, some greater 
and some less. Man must ask for the forgiveness of his sins 
but this is only one part of the process of elimination; the next 
and greater step is repayment—‘‘making good”—in so far as 
possible. ‘This repayment we must make willingly or we shall 
be compelled to do so by the inevitable and precise action and 
reaction of the Law of Compensation. No living Soul either can 
be excused by another or himself evade the positive action of 
the Law. 

Suppose we wrong another in any way and the one thus 
wronged or defrauded passes beyond the pale of mortal action: 
how then shall we voluntarily satisfy or meet the Law of Com- 


pensation? By making restitution to such persons as would, 





72 SONS OF GOD 


were he living, be dependent upon him; or, in instances where 
this it not possible, practicable or advisable, by helping others 
who are actually in need of such benefits or relief. The Law 
is simple and easy to satisfy and demands neither more nor 
less than simple honesty. 

More and more prevalent is the practice of obtaining 
through more or less violent methods the things we desire and 
to which we have no right. ‘Today no method employed at the 
expense of others is too brutal if thereby profit can be secured 
and pleasure gained. This condition is due to our non- 
comprehension of the operating Law and to a desire for the 
possession of things temporal because of our lack of knowledge 
and understanding that eternal benefits exist; due also to the 
universal delusion that that which is prohibited offers greater 


benefit and pleasure than that which is lawful. 


And the Lord God spake once again unto his 
Messenger, Manisis, saying: 

“Thy brethren live in the flesh and seek not 
peace. They are at enmity with all men be- 
cause they have not found the Father within 
their own selves. Thy brethren glory in destruc- 
tion and in war. They are become brutal. They 
exploit both their brethren and the creatures 
of the field. They speak loudly of peace with 
strange people, unaware that there shall be no 
cessation of war and of rumors of war, so long 
as brethren of one family cannot agree and live 
together without contention. Thy brethren prey 
upon one another as vultures on the bodies of 
the dead, and the Lord God cannot speak peace 
for them until they seek humility and strength 
within their own hearts.” 


LIBERAL EXPOSITION 


“Thy brethren live in the flesh [1 carnal desires and in an 


unenlightened and unawakened state; this includes nearly all 





SONS OF GOD 73 





men of today] and seek not peace. They are at enmity with all 
men because they have not found the Father [unity and content- 
ment| within their own selves [Souls]. Thy brethren glory in 
destruction [killing for the pleasure it offers and not of neces- 
sity] and in war [war, unless as a necessary measure of protec- 
tion or for the sake of justice, is destructive to the Soul and 
brings damnation upon the Souls of all who are responsible]. 
They are become brutal [guilty of cruelty both because tt seem- 
ingly offers pleasure or profit, and they think it “manly’]. They 
exploit both their brethren and the creatures of the field. [Noth- 
ing is sacred to the many seeking self-benefit if it offers profit, 
as is readily illustrated by the accursed and accursing narcotic 
trade for which nations considered highly civilized are respons- 
ible, and the brutalizing and exploitation of the natives of coun- 
tries termed “‘heathen’”’ |. They speak loudly [preach and lecture 
continuously| of peace with strange people [foreign coun- 
tries], unaware that there shall be no cessation of war and of 
rumors of war so long as brethren of one family cannot agree and 
live together without contention. Thy brethren prey upon one 
another as vultures upon the bodies of the dead [because it 
promise profit], and the Lord God cannot speak peace for 
them until they seek humility and strength [true devotion and 
Manhood glorsfied| within their own hearts.” 


And yet further spake the Lord God Jehovah, 
Father of Light, unto Manisis, saying: 

“There is sadness in heaven: Thy brethren 
have forgotten the true God and all his Laws 
and have set up for themselves false temples 
and idolatrous and blasphemous gods who seek 
not to reestablish the Laws governing man and 
the Universe in which he lives, moves and has 
his being but rather to establish unjust statutes 
for the repression of man’s natural desires. Thus 


74 SONS OF GOD 





they bring confusion more confounded among 
my foolish children, who, because they no longer 
are able to hear my voice speaking to them, 
have ‘been misled and have lost faith in all Laws, 
even in me, and live in open defiance of all Laws 
and of the rights of their brethren and are bring- 
ing swift destruction upon themselves and their 
brethren. 


“And now it has come to pass that the child- 
ren no longer respect and honor their parents, 
and the ignorant and selfish among your 
brethren set up unjust and unsanctioned statutes 
for their guidance and control, denying the 
natural parents this right and thereby bringing 
my displeasure upon them. And many of thy 
brethren, who themselves live as do the swine, 
have set themselves up as holy judges and 
pretend to say what their brethren shall or shall 
not do, which even I, the Lord, thy God, am not 
permitted to do and they have thereby made a 
parody of the freedom of choice. Your brethren 
are again enacting the scene of Babel by the 
confusion, not of divers tongues, but of many de- 
lusions which the multitudes must obey while 
the favored ones go unpunished and countless of 
thy brethren profit unholily because of these 
unsanctioned statutes, while the unfavored of 
this false kingdom are severely punished and 
degraded. And the vicious among your brethren 
are seated in golden palaces, while the humble 
of my children are yoked as oxen. 

“I, the Lord God, say unto thee: Yet a little 
while and I will fill the hearts of my children 
with a consuming fire. I will say unto them: 
‘Go, ye, cleanse my temples of the false guides 
and money changers, and establish ye my king- 
dom. Behold! the sword of the Lord shall go 
before you and shall destroy all those who stand 
in your way. Thus will the Lord, thy God, estab- 
lish his kingdom on earth.’ ” 


LIBERAL EXPOSITION 
And yet further spake the Lord God Jehovah—Father of 
Light, unto Manisis, saying: . 
“There is sadness in heaven [in all the realms of right and 
justice]: Thy brethren have forgotten the true God and all his 
Laws and have set up for themselves false temples [halls of 





SONS OF GOD fy 





legislation] and idolatrous and blasphemous gods [lawmakers], 
who seek not to reestablish the Laws governing man and the 
Universe in which he lives, moves and has his being but rather 
to establish unjust statutes for the repression [not for the under- 
standing and direction] of man’s natural desires. ‘Thus they 
bring confusion more confounded among my foolish [ignorant] 
children, who, because they no longer are able to hear my voice 
speaking unto them, have been misled and have lost faith in all 
Laws, even in me, and live in open defiance of all Laws and of 
the rights of their brethren and are bringing swift destruction 
upon themselves and their brethren. 

“And now it has come to pass, that the children no longer 
respect and honor their parents [because these parents netther 
honor nor respect themselves], and the ignorant [meddlers] 
and selfish among your brethren set up unjust and unsanctioned 
[under the Divine Law| statutes [Constitutional Amendments | 
for their guidance and control, denying the natural parents this 
right and thereby bringing my displeasure [condemnation] upon 
them. And many of thy brethren who themselves live as do the 
swine [wine-bibbers and gluttons and gamblers*| have set them- 
selves up as holy judges and pretend to say what their brethren 
shall or shall not do, which even I, the Lord, thy God, am not 
permitted to do [God gave men free will and the right of choice, 
and this privilege is inborn and inviolable so long as it does not 
interfere with their rights or react to the harm or loss of others; 


*In reference to this, the testimony offered during her suit 
for divorce by Mrs. Frank D. Scott of Alpena, Michigan, wife of 
a Congressman, which was published during the early days of 
January, 1925, in The Evening Bulletin, Philadelphia, Pa., is in- 
teresting reading. 


76 SONS OF GOD 





not to one man or to a set of men, was this free will given but to 
all men| and they have thereby made a parody of the freedom of 
choice. Your brethren are again enacting the scene of Babel by 
the confusion, not of divers tongues but of many delusions 
[multiplicity of conflicting legislative enactments| which the 
multitudes must obey while the favored ones [legislators, con- 
gressmen, political henchmen and professional reformers] go 
unpunished [may safely ignore and be in no fear of punishment 
as though above all law], and countless of thy brethren profit 
unholily because of these unsanctioned statutes [the professional 
reformers and henchmen who hold political positions by dis- 
honesty in office and the acceptance of bribes, which crime has 
now become universal| while the unfavored of this false king- 
dom [the non-political and laboring, working multitudes] are 
severely punished and degraded [heavily taxed and gradually 
becoming submerged through the various amendments to the 
Conststution and by having their right of choice and privilege 
taken from them]. And the vicious [ political henchmen lacking 
honor and moral qualifications] among your brethren are seated 
in golden palaces [high places among men, with large remunera- 
tion and opportunity for unjust gains*—*“graft”| while the 
humble of my children [the honest workers] are yoked as oxen 
| forced to labor continuously and bear the burden of a multipli- 
city of taxation]. 

“I, the Lord thy God, say unto thee: Yet a little while 
and I will fill the hearts of my children [all those now on earth 
who accept the dictates of the Divine Law and enter into the 

*Vide the Department of Justice scandal and the conviction 


of Gaston B. Means of that department. Philadelphia Bulletin of 
January 30, 1925 and former issues. 


SONS OF GOD 77 


spirit of the Law by making every effort to live in harmony with 


it and who help to spread the truth of God’s coming kingdom] 
with a consuming fire [awaken the honor-loving and just multi- 


tudes with a sense of justice and a strength without fear]. I will 
say unto them: ‘Go, ye, cleanse my temples [places where God, 
justice and honor should be personified and manifested in the 
drafting of fair and impartial rules of conduct—laws—for the 
incentive of action of all men, to the special benefit of none] of 
the false guides and money changers [weaklings, grafters and 
those working for self-interest] and establish ye my kingdom [the 
rule of justice|. Behold! the sword of the Lord [an era of suf- 
fering, hunger, sorrow and pestilence| shall go before you and 
shall destroy all those who stand in the way [everything and 
every one who attempts to evade the Divine Laws or to force 
compliance to unjust and unrighteous enactments, rules or regu- 
lations of whatever sort|. Thus will I, the Lord, thy God, estab- 
lish my kingdom on earth [for a thousand years].” 

Despite the corruption of the times and of the hearts of 
(many) men, they are the Sons of man, with all the necessary 
potentiality, possibility and opportunity of becoming the Sons 
of God, as have other “men born of women” before them. 

The genus homo generally has not yet developed to that stage 
where he is become truly man, the first essential to enter the 
path toward Godhead, which, essentially, is neither more nor 
less than Man glorified, man exalted, man Illuminated. 

Man seeks pleasure, as he does benefit and profit, for him- 
self alone. He yet has not become aware of the fact that true 
enjoyment is possible only when others besides himself are 


benefitted equally with himself; that there is a profit in which 


78 SONS OF GOD 
Ae RE at TE ale a 


others share equally with him and that that which benefits him- 
self alone is not a lasting (actual) benefit. Once man com- 
prehends the Law, he will so arrange his affairs and his busi- 
ness, that all his dealings will be just and no one be defrauded 
out of one penny. When man awakens to the fundamental 
truths underlying human relationship, he will use all things in 
the right way and apply all forces constructively. Thus shall 
he find himself in the path of light—which is righteousness. 

The path of light leads to life and yet more life. The 
awakened mind—the consciousness of a deeper significance to 
man’s everyday activities—is the Key to the comprehension of 
the Law; the application of the Spirit of the Law leads to 
Soul Consciousness which is Hlumination. In this is the true 
life, both in the temporal and the eternal realms. 

Two thousand years ago, an humble laborer in God’s vine- 
yard preached to men saying: ‘The time is fulfilled and the 
kingdom of God is at hand; bethink yourself and believe in 
the gospel.”—Mark 1:15. And again: “And if ye do not be- 
think yourselves, ye shall perish.— Luke 13:5. 

A liberal exposition of these sayings is: ‘The time prom- 
ised by the prophets of old is fulfilled [is now at hand] and the 
kingdom of God is at hand [the time has come when, through 
the personification of the Law in the personality, men may come 
into the kingdom of God, which is the Conscious realization of 
one’s inheritance, namely, Sonship|; bethink yourself [bestir 
yourself, awaken] and believe in the gospel [think, believe and 
live and act in full accordance with the Divine Law—the gospel 
as taught by him].” John here states the Law; Luke supplies 
the letter of the penalty: “And if you do not bethink yourself 


SONS OF GOD 19 





[tf you do not awaken and harmonize your life and action ac- 
cording to the letter and spirit of the Law], ye shall perish 
[“perish” has but one meaning—a complete loss, death to body 
and the personality will be the result—the kingdom of heaven— 
Immortalization—not being attained by that Soul]. 

Men did not listen to these admonitions. Though some of 
them accepted the letter of the Law, they refused the spirit of 
it. The destruction (loss of morality and all that is actually 
desirable) has continued ever since and will become greater and 
more pronounced until men learn to obey, not the mere sayings 
of prophets and men but the commands of the Divine Law 
which these prophets and men expound, and to apply them in 
spirit to their lives and actions. 

The time is now highly propitious for those who desire 
progress and regeneration, if they will obey the Law. But let 
all fully awaken to the fact that it is not sufficient to have faith 
in the Law but it is essential to live in harmony with its re- 
quirements. He who lives according to the Law shall receive the 
fruits (results or reactions) of the Law. 

Millions of humans, possessing all the potentialities for 
happiness, long life and final Immortalization, are rapidly pro- 
ceeding toward destruction; they are perishing because they 
either will not listen to the exposition of the Law that confers 
life or, listening, will not apply it to the thought and actions 
of their lives. About us, on every side, there is war or the 
rumors of (preparation for) war, all because men will not have 
peace—will not establish peace within their own hearts; and 
thus shall it continue until men, through the agency of long 
suffering, learn to know that to establish peace for all, they must 


80 SONS OF GOD 


begin with the units: find peace (the absence of hate and re- 
venge) in individual hearts, then in the family so there shall 
be no contention therein, next in the community, then the town, 
the city, the state and finally, the Nation—for the Nation is a 
family and when there is no longer war in the Nation then 
shall nations be at peace with one another. The tribunal where 
peace is to be established is in the hearts of men and so long 
as the hearts of men are filled with malice, hatred and revenge, 
there shall be no peace, despite the easily-given pledges of the 
diplomats of nations and the tribunals of finite, mortal men 
who neither comprehend the Law nor care to apply the spirit 
of the Law. 

For the sake of personal ambition or hatred (seldom for 
the establishment of Justice) nation continues to war against 
nation and millions meet untimely death. Such deaths and the 
eternal cry of these Souls who had no time to fulfill their 
destiny, are the judgment upon those who are responsible. Self- 
preservation is recognized as nature’s first law; therefore Justice 
and protection alone righteously can be the causation of war 
and, in such a case, no one may lawfully profit one farthing 
without reaping the curse (the reaction of the Law of Compen- 
sation) thereof. 

There are others equally as guilty as those who instigate 
and profit by war. These are the usurers who take unjust ad- 
vantage—the money lenders and employers—of the many who 
still remain the slaves of circumstances. Some of these human 
derelicts are caged up underground; others, in the wilderness 
of the woods; and still others, like the unfortunate (because 
compelled to labor) women and children, toil in factories unfit 


SONS OF GOD 81 





for the habitat of beasts of the jungle. All such as exploit these 
weak ones have their blood upon their hands and must, under 
the Divine Law, compensate for every pain, every sorrow and 
all unjust profits wrung out of them through contributed 
labor. Legislative enactments will help little. Constitutional 
amendment to govern child labor is a delusion, making a farce 
of freedom, interfering with the natural and divine rights of 
the parents, establishing a paternalistic oligarchy in place of 
a free government and placing unlimited power in the hands of 
self-righteous and professional reformers who are at heart no 
better or more capable than the rest of their race. The only 
remedy is education and enlightenment and they are the Pre- 
lude to the inculcation of the Divine Law, the gradual process 
of making outcast from all decent society, all those who exploit 
or attempt to exploit them that are too weak or unenlightened 
to protect themselves. 

Unless man bethink himself he shall perish. The Law has 
not been changed one iota since John preached in the wilder- 
ness. To bethink oneself—or “repent,” to use the Bible term— 
is to awaken to the truth and catch a glimpse of the light ahead. 
Man does not bethink himself unless he first begins to realize 
that the life he is living is irrational and unnatural, of the 
senses and temporal. 

When man awakens even to part of the truth and com- 
mences to bethink himself, he will give consideration to the 
Divine Law as taught by the Master-Teacher two thousand 
years ago. He then will ask himself whether it is right that 
he should profit by that which will work harm to another and 
will seriously question whether “thou shalt not steal” does not 


82 SONS OF GOD 





apply to his action and, if his mind be fair, he will be forced 
to desist. As man awakens more and more, he will bethink 
himself more and more and gradually will come to comprehend 
the spirit of the Divine Law and work harmoniously with it. 

By doing this, he will begin to awaken his inner faculties 
and to apply them in the activities of his life. Gradually as he 
continues to obey the dictates of the Divine Law, he will regain 
his manhood; with manhood, will come strength; then advance 
is made toward Sonship and he will become aware that it is 
possible to know pleasure without resulting pain or sorrow, 
profit without robbery and life without murder. 

Each man is personally (the mental-physical part of him) 
and individually (Soul—Soulfully) responsible to God (or the 
Divine Law, whichever we prefer) for every thought, desire 
and act. No man can plead successfully that he has been com- 
pelled to do unrighteously by another. To offer such an excuse 
is to admit himself the slave to persons or circumstances; and 
no one can be in bondage either to circumstances or personalities 
unless he be first of all bound by the lower, carnal self. 

The first step in the search for freedom is the conquest 
over the self, namely, to free the real man from all other than 
constructive and elevating desires; for it is carnal, selfish, 
lustly passions that lead the individual to rob, cheat, lie and 
exploit his fellow creatures, to commit all other destructive acts, 
and lead the Nation to war, rapine, murder and other crimes. 

The salvation of race or nation must begin with the in- 
dividual. As the individual becomes conscious of the truth 
and obeys the dictates of Divine Law, regeneration within him- 


self will be the result. The fruits of such a regime will induce 


SONS OF GOD 83 





others to follow in his footsteps and ultimately the Nation, like 
the individual, is saved (rehabilitated) and firmly established 
under the protection of the Divine Law and this will continue 
throughout the age of a thousand years—the Millennium. 

No man, for instance, could plead conscientiously before 
the Divine Throne that he had been forced to war against his 
fellow man, for the Divine Law recognizes no such thing as 
compulsion, having conferred upon man the right of choice or 
free-will; man is thereby and thereunder held personally re- 
sponsible for all that he does and the manner in which he does 
it, and only the nature of the inducing cause, so far as he 
personally is concerned, can mitigate or nullify the natural 
penalty. 

No man can plead force, for every man (except the idiot 
and he is not a full—whole—holy—man) is born and blessed 
with a mind and reasoning faculty. Before he commits himself 
to any act whatever, he must ask himself the question: Is it 
right to do this? Is it asin? If the answer indicates that it is 
not right, then his duty to God and man is to refuse. He must 
not commit the deed even though he lose the life of the body. 
He must remember, in such a case, that “he who would save his 
[own] life shall lose it.” 

In this connection, we should question, What is right? 
What is a sin? “Right” and “sin” are synonomous terms. Any 
thought, act or deed which may be harmful to the self or an- 
other, is unrighteous and is therefore a sin. There may be a 
middle ground, a choice between two evils, as, for instance, in 
the protection of a life, one’s own or another’s when it is certain 
that one or the other will be destroyed. In such instances, 


84 SONS OF GOD 





Nature’s Law of Self Preservation may be accepted and one 
may destroy in order to save. Even then, this may be considered 
as murder\\-if the destroyer was the aggressor. War comes 
under this heading and is always wrong but when a nation 
becomes (unrighteously and not for its own protection) the 
aggressor and would rape and destroy, then the nation chosen 
as the victim may claim the protection of Nature’s Law of Self 
Preservation and wage war in return. ‘This is sanctioned by 
the Divine Law as fighting “fire with fire.” 

He who has awakened to the Law of Justice, whose mind 
has become imbued with the Divine Law, will recognize only 
his duty: first, to God and second, to man. He always will 
try to obey the Laws of the Father, as does the good working 
man the orders of those in executive positions above him. The 
awakened man seeks the avenue of right (exact justice to all), 
listens to the voice within himself and obeys this regardless of 
the cost. He is not governed by a blind faith, for that is 
slavery; he walks in the path of the light of the Soul—the light 
which comes from Ged the Father and which blends with the 
light that is within himself. 

No man who has come into Conscious Oneness with the 
Father, can or will uphold the destruction of life or countenance 
it except when essential to self-preservation. No man who has 
become awakened and has travelled the Path to Illumination, 
can sanction war, though he may admit it to have become neces- 
sary for the protection of the innocent. War is not made right 
because sanctioned by organized society which we term ‘“‘the 
government” and which is composed of individuals who them- 


selves personally are responsible to God and who, though com- 


SONS OF GOD 85 
a a ea 


bined in a unit or group, have no greater right to sanction legal 
murder than has the individual. Even when made necessary 
because women and children, the old and the weak, must be 
protected, war is a crime because it is destructive to life, which, 
though abused and degraded in the individual, is, nevertheless, 
sacred to God; when war is thus made necessary, it is the 
lesser of two evils and is tolerated even by the Divine Law. 

Under the Divine Law might does not become right and 
cannot make right. It is just as evil and just as destructive to 
the Soul for men in unison to commit crime as it is for one 
man who acts alone. “Thou shalt not kill” is the fiat, sent 
forth not only by God but by the thundering voice of the ages. 
War is ever wrong even though divided between greater and 
lesser wrong in considering the aggressor; and war will continue 
to be. waged so long as men hate and remain covetous and 
Leagues of Nations can be no more than the playground of the 
idle and foolish and the cause of both regret and jest on the 
part of the wise. 


“Ye have heard that it was said by them of 
old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever 
shall kill shall be in danger of judgment; but I 
say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his 
brother without a cause shall be in danger of 
the judgment; and whosoever shall say to his 
brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the counvil; 
but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in 
danger of hell fire. Therefore if thou bring thy 
gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy 
brother hath aught against thee, leave there 
thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first 
be reconciled to thy brother and then come and 
offer thy gift. Agree with thine adversary 
quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; 
lest the adversary deliver thee to the judge and 
the judge deliver thee to ithe officer and thou 
be cast into prison. Verily, I say unto thee, 


86 SONS OF GOD 


thou shalt by no means come out thence till thou 
hast paid the uttermost farthing.’”—Matt, 5:21-26. 


LIBERAL EXPOSITION 


“Ye have heard [read or been taught] that it was said by 
them of old [the Master-Teachers and Messengers of God] time, 
Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger 
of judgment [all who take life risk this danger and the only 
reason that some escape the judgment—condemnation—is be- 
cause they were justified in that they defended either their own 
or another's life and were not the aggressors in the fray or con- 
flict which resulted in the taking of life]; but I say unto you, 
that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall 
[also| be in danger of the judgment [anger in the heart is a 
form of hatred and ts a double-edged sword; it causes one to see 
darkly and to do that which is evil—unjustly; anger is the dis- 
tillation of a poison which injures body and Soul and is a source 
of internal weakness, disease and fatlure. Sin, whatever its 
nature, is sin; that is to say, harm is harm, whether such action 
be hatred which blinds the Soul or the action that takes a life, 
and all who allow themselves to be mastered by passion are in 
danger of the judgment—condemnation]; and whosoever shall 
say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council; but 
whosoever shall say, Thou fool [render judgment on another], 
shall be in danger of hell fire [condemnation—being judged ac- 
cording to his own judgment]. ‘Therefore if thou bring thy gift 
to the altar [if you voice a prayer and seek forgiveness] and 
there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee [if 
you are guilty of any offence whatsoever against any other], 
leave there thy gift [your intention] before the altar [in the 


SONS OF GOD 87 
eee 


heart—do not give up], and go thy way; first be reconciled to 
thy brother [make full restitution for your evil deeds against 
him or losses or sorrows to him] and then come and offer thy 
gift [man’s supplications for forgiveness are not acceptable to 
God nor recognized by the Divine Law until he has complied 
with the spirit of the Law and first does unto others as he would 
be done by. Man once fully comprehending this underlying 
spirit of religion, will bethink himself before he commits wrong 
against or brings losses to his fellow man]. Agree with thine 
adversary quickly whiles thou art in the way with him [in the 
same manner of life as he]; lest the adversary deliver thee to the 
judge [the Law] and the judge deliver thee to the officer [the 
penalties for disobedience and even for sitting in judgment 
against your adversary while you are guilty of the same wrongs | 
and thou be cast into prison. Verily, I say unto thee, Thou 
shalt by no means come out thence [receive forgiveness and be 
permitted to come into the kingdom of justice and righteousness | 
till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing [until you have made 
restitution for all your evil actions}.” 

Not only is it forbidden man to take life or to take any- 
thing from another which he is powerless to restore but he is 
admonished not to bear anger against his fellows. To become 
unjustly angry—angry without a righteous cause—is not only 
possibly to be guilty of committing an unreasonable offence but is 
a poisoning of the self which can be so great as to leave its marks 
upon .body and Soul for ages. If there be cause for a righteous 
anger, then this should not be reason for malice and thoughts 
of revenge but merely indicative of reasonable action on our 


part to demand redress for the cause of our anger. The Master- 





88 SONS OF GOD 


Teacher many times showed anger with the evils he witnessed 
but in no instance did this righteous anger usurp his reason or 
give birth to hatred or desire for revenge. 

Anger, if permitted an abiding place within us for any 
length of time, is deadly to all that is Divine in us. It is a 
passion belonging to the negative side of existence and is a 
destroyer; therefore is it said to be “‘of the devil”—the destroyer 


because the term ‘‘devil’’ or “satan”? covers all that is 





of man 
destructive, all that leads away from life and toward death. 
Holding—nursing—anger against any one, in itself results in 
“the judgment,” because it generates deadly poisons which 
ultimately would give birth to such deadly diseases as cancer 
or tuberculosis, or such immediate ailments as apoplexy; and it 
must never be forgotten that any injury to ourselves of which we 
are the cause, 1s as strongly condemned by the Divine Law as a 
loss or sorrow to another. It is sin. 

If man has aught against his brother—and this has re- 
ference, not merely to kin of flesh and blood but to all the 
human family—his spiritual offerings to the throne of God 
are not acceptable until he has, on the one hand, cast out hatred, 
malice and all thought of revenge and, on the other, made 
restitution for wrongs committed or losses incurred. Peace can- 
not be established in the heart—the inner world of being—by 
the man who continues or permits unjust warfare in the outer 
world, his usual sphere of action. 

No man can establish two contrary emotions in his heart 
at one and the same time. It is impossible to have the love of 
God in the heart and at the same time entertain hatred or a 


desire for revenge against or evil to one of our fellow men. So 


SONS OF GOD 89 


long as there is an inclination in heart or mind to bring harm 
to one of the lowest of the human family, just so long will one’s 
“gift,” whether a supplication for forgiveness, a request for 
light or wisdom, or any request, be unacceptable to God. Before 
prayer in any form can become vital, that is, filled with life, 
potent for action and acceptable to him who is all love, it must 
come to him free from all taint of evil and unstained with the 
evidence of any evil, loss, misery or sorrow to others who are 
equally or even more greatly his children. Man has a right to 
seek justice. He is even admonished to seek restitution for 
wrongs or losses but he must do so in the right spirit, be with- 
out thought of hatred, malice or revenge. 

War, basically founded on the hatred in the hearts of in- 
dividual men, or falsely established therein by the shrewdness 
of those who play on the weaknesses of men for their own bene- 
fit, is always an evil and can never right a wrong. All that it 
can do AND THE ONLY INSTANCE IN WHICH IT CAN 
BE JUSTIFIED IS IN THE PREVENTION OF A GREAT- 
ER WRONG. 

Ultimately, a corrective method will be employed and this 
method will be the universal shunning of the nation that at- 
tempts to wrong another nation or coerce it into any agreement 
which is unjust. Today, practically all great nations profess 
to be Christian—that is, to be guided by the inculcations of the 
Master-Teacher who lived and preached nearly two thousand 
years ago. However, not a single one of these nations ever has 
attempted to deal with other nations or even with its own people, 
according to the Divine Law and the Christic principles. All 
wars thus far waged, have been governed basically by those who 


90 SONS OF GOD 





cared not one jot or tittle for the establishment of Justice, the 
welfare of the people or the safety of democracy. They thought 
first and foremost of the benefits accruing to themselves and 
were justified by the demon Self Interest and by the gold— 
tainted and accursed—that flowed into their coffers. 

When the multitudes of men awaken to the Law of Justice, 
as the Lord God Jehovah, through his Messenger, Manisis, as- 
sures us they will, then, in case of war, the former masters 
equally with the lowest in the land, shall be conscripted, each 
one with all the wealth he possesses with the exception of needed 
sums for the families; each one shall be given a position or duty 
according to his fitness or ability; and then, because no man 
shall be allowed to profit and all must equally suffer, wars will 
not be proclaimed except in the interest of JUSTICE to all 
men. 

In that time also, men shall see rightly and the nation that 
attempts to take advantage of a weaker nation or one believed 
to be weaker, shall be placed on trial before all other nations 
and shall be shunned by them as a leper; its trade shall be 
refused; it shall become an outcast with a mark upon its counte- 
nance; its days shall be numbered. 

Men say this will be impossible because it would interfere 
with business, work hardships and lead to many difficulties. 
When the time comes for the Divine Law to function, nothing 
that 1s under the Law will be impossible. It will interfere with 
business but war always does that in any event. It will work 
hardship but that is usual when there is a state of war. There 
will be many difficulties but that is natural when nations act 
unnaturally. ‘Thus far, only neutral nations have profited by 


SONS OF GOD 91 


their trade with both warring countries. In the New Time, all 
nations shall be with the right and conflicts shall be short lived 
and then cease, and men whose hearts are filled with JUSTICE 
and who may not benefit by the struggle, shall listen to the 
claims and weigh the evidence and give the verdict. 

No one has the strength to live with the brand of Cain 
upon him. Take a murderer for example: set a mark upon 
him so that he will be known for his crime and then set him 
free; that man would be unable to dwell among his kind for a 
single month though no man laid hands upon him. At first 
he might be brazen but every glance directed at him would have 
its effect. Though it might not even be a fact, yet he would 
feel that every such glance was due to the mark upon him. 
Within a short period of time, his mental condition would be- 
come so chaotic that it would be utterly impossible for him to 
look a human being in the face and within a month the punish- 
ment of living among men, yet outcast from them, would become 
unbearable. 

As with individuals so with nations. A nation is no more 
than a number of individuals who are not changed because they 
form a nation. At first, the nation pronounced guilty, if it were 
self-supporting, might attempt to face ostracism but within a 
very short time its isolation would become unendurable and it 
willingly would make peace and repair the wrong. 

In the New Age now at hand, corrective methods will be 
employed more and more in dealings with contumacious nations 
and with the individual outlaw (out-of-law). Thus far, men 
who have brought about states of war have never been the men 
who did the fighting nor the ones who suffered the financial 


92 SONS OF GOD 





losses. Generally, it has been the poor but strong, the law- 
abiding citizens, who have gone to battle, upheld the honor of 
the country and womanhood and made the profits for those who 
remained at home and directed the manufacture of the materials 
of destruction. 

One Lamennais wrote: ‘Towards the close of his mis- 
sion, Jesus proclaimed a new society and fixed its foundations. 
Before him, nations were the possession of one or several mas- 
ters and belonged to these like so many herds. Everywhere the 
tyrannical domination of a few and the servitude of the rest, 
oppressed in the name of force or under the insolent pretext 
of superiority of nature. Princes and grandees crused the 
world with all the weight of their pride and their rapacity. 
Then Jesus comes to put an end to this extreme disorder. He 
comes to lift the bowed down heads; to emancipate these mul- 
titudes of slaves. He teaches them that, equal before God [that 
is with equal rights and opportunities], men are free in regard 
to each other; that no one has any intrinsic power over his 
brother; that equality and liberty, these divine laws of the human 
race, are inviolable; that power henceforth can no longer be 
regarded as right; that it must depend upon the association 
which delegates to it a function, a service, a devotion, a kind 
of slavery accepted by love in view of the welfare of all. Such 
is the society which Jesus commanded his disciples to establish 
among themselves.” 

Was such a society established? Is this doctrine which 
the Master-Teacher inculcated, the one that governs the actions 
of men (especially those in office, political and otherwise) to- 
day? Have these expositions of the law been made the rules 





SONS OF GOD 93 





of the life, the thoughts, the desires and actions of men, especial- 
ly of those who are in governing or dictating capacity and who 
should set the example for the masses? Or have the educated, 
fortunate minority, for their own selfish purposes, promulgated 
these democratic and just doctrines as a faith, something to be- 
lieve, a promise to be collected in a future life? 

Admittedly there is a vast change from the feudal condi- 
tions of past ages but we still have the identical conditions in 
our prisons, federal or otherwise,* that ruled in the galleys that 
sailed the ancient seas. We still have with us the inhuman 
drivers of the slaves in these galleys, who, with their whips, 
walked the planks between the oarsmen, belaying right and 
left—the political henchmen who, as their unholy reward for 
duty as political workers, are awarded wardenships in our 
penal institutions, their profits depending upon their inhuman- 
ness to the prisoners confined to their tender (!) care. Today, 
even as hundreds of years ago, the ‘Christian’ public gives 
just as much kindly thought and offers as much consolation to 
these unfortunates as did the same “Christian” public to the 
slaves chained in the galleys. Oh, Master-Teacher! How 
faithfully have thy professed devotees accepted the spirit of thy 
instructions ! 


Today, despite the educational, scientific and inventive 


*Vide ithe report published in the Evening Bulletin of Phila- 
delphia, Pa., February 11, 1925 of the shooting of a convict in a 
Texas prison camp, by a guard, not for a crime or an infraction 
of prison rules, but because it was thought that he might become 
guilty. Under the Divine Law, and before the Throne of God, 
not only the guard and prison authorities are guilty of inhuman- 
ness, therefore crime, but you and | are held accountable, be- 
cause we, as part of the government, permit such crimesi to be 
committed. 


94 SONS OF GOD 
a ee EO 


progress achieved by man, there is strife everywhere. Every- 
where the hand of one man is against the other and, worst of 
all, on all sides the hand of the strong is against the weak, 
masters of the workers against the workers. Those in temporal 
power, supposedly the servants of the people, are against the 
interests of the people having their own aims and ends in view. 
Huge manufacturing interests (though by no means all of them) 
are against the welfare of women (working women—not the 
self-styled “hard-boiled” political workers) and children. 

After eighteen hundred years of the expounding of the 
Master-Teacher’s inculcations, society is still essentially the 
same and this is due not alone to those in high places but 
equally so to the jealousy and envy of those who toil; and, due 
also to these evil passions in the hearts of the workers, they 
become the easy victims of the shrewd parasites of society. In 
many respects, man today is less fortunate than in past ages, 
for now he has advanced to a high state of development in so 
far as labor-saving devices are concerned; he is better able to 
cope with the problems of life; but with all this, he is far more 
blameable and condemnable than ever before for now he knows 
much of the truth, the right from the wrong, the constructive 
from the destructive, and yet he refuses to accept the Law or, 
accepting its letter, he refuses to apply the spirit. 

Man instinctively feels that true womanhood should be 
protected, that it is sacred but instead of paying homage to the 
shrine of motherhood, he debauches it and thus curses and de- 
stroys it. He is aware that innocence is the foundation of 
character and the Soul of man but he exploits it and traffics in 


it. In the foretime, in many nations, men were taught that 


SONS OF GOD 95 





woman had no Soul. Man now acknowledges this her divine 
heritage and that she is equal with him, yet she herself, in 
numerous instances, does her best to prove his ancient conten- 
tion and disprove his present better knowledge concerning her. 
With all his present knowledge, man has not become more 
humane, is not less ferocious when his selfish nature is aroused 
and, due to his inventive ability, is a hundredfold more destruc- 
tive. 

But the time is rapidly approaching in which great and 
almost unbelievable changes are to come about. The masses 
will awaken from their sleep and inertia and seek deeply for 
the cause of things; they will study and accept the Divine Law; 
the rule of the multitude by the few for self interest, will cease 
and man will govern himself. Men are beginning to recognize 
the fact that to do that which is not in harmony with the 
Divine Law—for the best interest of all and least depressive of 
any—is to bring about its own punishment. Once this Law is 
fully comprehended, the mass will no longer obey self- 
appointed masters in anything when they know that such obedi- 
ence is not for the benefit of all. 

The multitudes are now seeking the truth. Up to the 
present, they have been willing to accept the statements of 
those in power or recognized as authorities, whether this con- 
cerned affairs of state, matters of law, questions of religion or 
problems of economics. They are no longer blind to the fact 
that there must be something radically wrong when the worthy 
are ground in the dust; their sons set into fields of battle with- 
out their right to question why; their daughters sold by the 
thousand to the lowest forms of debauchery; their minor child- 


96 SONS OF GOD 


ren, under a gradual usurpation of all their authority in home 
and family, sought as wards of the Federated States.* 

The constantly growing greed of the few in power and the 
steady usurpation of the rights of the many (citizens) and the 
thinly-veiled contention that they—the masses—are unable 
either to think for themselves or govern themselves, is the cause 
of the awakening of the people and the underlying incentive for 
their search for the knowledge that will lead them to freedom. 
When a man once becomes aware that there is something radi- 
cally wrong in an existing order of things, that this is the means 
of loss to him or a denial of part of his inalienable rights, he 
will be ready, aye, anxious to begin the search for the underlying 
cause. And when he finds that cause, beware! For his action 
is then both swift and certain. His search may extend over a 
long period but eventually he will find both the disease and the 
remedy and he may be trusted to apply the rmedy AND THAT 
MOST THOROUGHLY and eradicate the disease. The treat- 
ment, as for example, that of the French revolution, may be 
heroic but it is none less the efficient. 

The one thing deplorable, when men thoroughly awaken 
to unjust conditions, is the universal tendency to cast aside all 


authority and for those formerly abused and exploited to cast 


*The proposed ‘National Child Labor Constitutional Amend- 
ment, at this writing being nationally agitated, has as its ap- 
parent aim ‘the protection of children but is the same in spirit 
as ‘that which, in Sparta, took all government of the children 
from the natural parents. The Amendment, if permitted, is the 
beginning of (Paternalism and Socialism—the destruction of the 
sanctity of the home and the centralization of power in the 
hands of the few to control the minds, bodies and Souls of the 
millions. It is a death blow to the rights of the individual; an 
“obnoxious innovation.” 


SONS OF GOD 97 





aside all restraint.* Anarchy then reigns for a time, unjust 
and just alike suffer until men gain some form of sanity and 
recognize that unrestricted action is resultful of as great evils 
as the wrong and unjust restrictions known as laws. But, at 
last, out of the turmoil shall come sanity, a knowledge of Divine 
Law and obedience to its behests. Then shall be the period of 
the thousand years. 

The work for the true leader and his coworkers is to 
instruct man in the Divine Law and, in full comprehension of 
both his weaknesses and his strength, show him that it is by 
education and individual development that the changes must 
be brought about for the betterment of all men—not by revolu- 
tion which creates a universal Karma as destructive to the race 
as the iron rule of unjust men or governments. Mamnisis, the 
Messenger of the New Age, is here for this purpose and through 
his disciples he is to point out to all men that they must come 
to a full comprehension of the Divine law and where they 
must be under guidance so that they may become free and self- 
governing. Once man fully understands this and the action of 
the Law, he will become truly man—Man glorified—and no 


longer the plaything of fate, circumstances or politicians. 





*An example and one of the most horrible since history has 
been written, is that of the Russian revolution. Though the rule 
of the Russian Government and its henchmen was destructive 
to the happiness of the individual, the anarchy which followed 
in the wake of the overthrow of government, the murder, rape 
and fearful carnage visited upon all suspected of not being in 
sympathy with the new regime, was greater and more destruc- 
tive to Souls than all the misrule of all the ages of Russia pre- 
ceding. It will be ages before the Karma created by the human 
butchery and which is resting upon all who are or were in sym- 
pathy with it, can be removed even by the best intentions and 
greatest works of human welfare. 


98 SONS OF GOD 


“A wonderful and horrible thing is come to 
pass in the land; the prophets prophesy falsely, 
and the priests bear rule by their means; and 
my people love to have it so; and what will ye 
do in the end thereof?”’—Jeremiah 5:30-31. 

This is now true! Those who should and who profess to 
teach the people the truth, which is the Divine Law, are un- 
willing to do so because of the fear that the people will forsake 
them. And their fear is well founded because of two things: 
First, all men have their weakness, their individual sins and 
destructive habits, and to instruct them in the Law is to touch 
the sensitive ulcer which is destroying the Soul. This is to 
create resentment, for men resent nothing so quickly as 
having an error pointed out to them; second, after the resent- 
ment has passed and they recognize the truth, they will appre- 
ciate it all the more for the hurt and will apply it and the Law 
will make them free and they will then know that individual 
responsibility is incurred in their freedom and that they are re- 
sponsible only to God and their own Souls. ‘They will then 
know that the thought and desire which induce action bring 
about result; that when action is constructive the result will be 
desirable and that the act which is the result of a wrong or evil 
thought, cannot bring forth good and desirable fruit. Then 
no longer will man accept the fallacy that life—all of thought, 
desire and action—is a matter of mere formal—blind—faith, 
that Immortality and eternal life can be conferred upon one by 
offering a mere confession of faith. He will know that the 
Immortality of the Soul must be won through deliberate and 
conscious effort—by right thought, elevating desire and con- 
structive action. 


It is admitted that, in the beginning, this is not by any 





SONS OF GOD 99 





means an easy path to pursue for the reason that it demands 
action—work—in addition to faith. Once the start is made and 
the ennobling work begun and man through his activities begins 
to see the results of his efforts, then will his eyes be opened 
and he will see the righteousness—rightness—of his works. He 
will proceed naturally and wisely, combining his material work 
—business affairs or professional duties—with his spiritual 
work—mental exaltation and development—and life on earth 
will be as it was intended to be. That which was mortal will 
become Immortal and the kingdom of heaven will begin in the 
realm of the kingdom of the earth. 

“Faith without works is dead [iert].” A faith to be fruit- 
ful must be founded on truth, must be, basically, the spirit of 
the Divine Law blooming in the hearts of men. To possess 
such a faith, will be inducive of efforts to harmonize with it 
and ultimately there will result a demonstration that faith is 
not dead but a living, pulsating, energizing force for good. 


“He hath blinded their eyes and hardened 
their hearts; lest they should see with their 
eyes and perceive with ‘their heart and should 
turn and I should heal them.”—John 12:40. 

It is the flesh, the self with its carnal desires which blinds 
the eyes—the reasoning faculties—of mankind. It is the mortal 
self that constantly seeks to satisfy its every hunger—passion— 
and that hushes into silence the Voice of the Soul. It is through 
catering to this never-satisfied state of the carnal self in man 
that the wise, though wholly selfish leaders, keep humanity under 
subjection. For well they know that when men once free them- 
selves from the appetites of the flesh and from unworthy (un- 


holy, unwholesome) desires, they no longer will countenance 





100 SONS OF GOD 





their own state of slavery or permit others to profit by their 
weaknesses. 

The first step, then, in seeking freedom from external 
bondage, is for man to free himself from his own carnal, fleshly 
(lustly) desires. When he has accomplished this, he will soon 
be free from all undesirable conditions, bondages and environ- 
ments in the external world. It is satan—the passions of the 
flesh—the mortal man—who continually blinds the eyes of 
man; and it is the fear—imp of darkness—of taking an un- 
familiar step which prevents him from advancing toward the 
light and being healed—enlightened. 


“Be not afraid of them which kill the body 
but are not able to kill the soul; but rather fear 
him which is able to destroy both body and soul 
in hell.”—Matt. 10:28. 


But that is just it! Men, with rare exceptions, think little 
or nothing at all about the Soul. To most of them the Soul is 
both an unknown and unknowable quality and to be thought of 
last, if at all. Every thought, both day and night, is given to 
the needs of the body and, the pity of it is, that this thought is 
not of the real requirements of the body for the preservation of 
health and strength but of those things which bring pleasure and 
satisfaction to gross desires and passions. It is these things 
which are to be feared, for, in the words of John, they destroy 
both body and Soul, although, as already said, men think little 
of the Soul, believe even less in its actual existence and end by 
claiming that the Soul, especially each his own precious Soul, 
cannot be destroyed! Ccnsistency, thou truly art a (rare) jewel! 

Universally, man’s one fear is for the body and its needs, 
whether these be food, raiment, housing, warmth or the satis- 


SONS OF GOD 101 





faction of the appetite. They fear constantly that the body may 
be made to sacrifice, that it be denied every want. The Soul, 
that precious jewel which may be brought into manifestation 
as gloriously brilliant as the finest diamond ever cut and 
polished by men, cannot be destroyed by other than ourselves. 
The life of the body may be taken by others but if a man loses 
his life in a righteous cause and in an unavoidable manner, he 
but gains a greater life. Men we should not fear—unless we 
are in the wrong—regardless of what they may attempt to do. 
Our own destructive thoughts, ignoble desires and evil (ungodly 
—non-good) acts, these are things to fear for they gradually 
destroy both the body and the Soul. 

Even though men may command us to commit deeds which 
we know to be evil, we may refuse to obey and we have the 
right, nay, we are Divinely commanded to refuse. The extreme 
penalty of man-made acts of enforcement (they are not laws— 
laws must harmonize with the Divine Law) may be loss of life 
but “he who loses his life for my sake | for righteousness— 
justice|”” shall gain a greater life, is the promise. On the 
contrary, if man complies with the commands of ignorant, evil- 
minded and self-interested men, whether out of fear or for 
expected reward or remuneration—the needs of the physical— 
he may not lose his body but he is certain irreparably to wrong 
his Soul if indeed he does not actually destroy it. Well does 
Matthew instruct us not to fear him—that is to say, an act or 
acts—that might destroy the body but to beware of him who can 
destroy the Soul. 

God only (men may disbelieve in a God but cannot argue 


consistently that there is no governing law) or the Divine Law 


102 SONS OF GOD 





is to be obeyed and man only when he is working in harmony 
with the Divine Law along constructive avenues and for the 
welfare of man—humanity in general. The refusal of man to 
obey an unjust command or decree even though he may suffer 
the penalty of death, was in the mind of the Master-Teacher 
when he said, ‘“He that loseth his life for my sake [for the sake 
of righteousness—rightness| shall find it—Matt. 10:39. 

If all men who profess, apparently with all sincerity, to be 
Christians, followers of the lowly Nazarene, were to refuse to 
commit sin, that is to say to do that which brings harm or loss 
or injury to themselves or others and, to be Christians in fact as 
well as by confession, they must so refuse, then all established 
orders and governments would fall within a day and a New 
Order, an enlightened and just brotherhood of man, be born. 
Gradually this will occur, so slowly and systematically that 
there will not appear a ripple on the sea of human action, yet so 
certainly that no man can say nay or retard its steady progress. 

The fact is uncontradictable that men never have been 
taught the necessity of actually and literally obeying the in- 
structions of the Master-Teacher, the dictates of the Divine 
Law. Erroneously they have been exhorted to “have faith” in 
the man Jesus, a personality, and to cast their wrongs upon his 
shoulders and thereby be saved, while incidentally, the few, 
those who wronged the many, were permitted to move among 
them unmolested, unpunished and frequently uncensured and— 
enjoy their ill-gotten gain. This erroneous interpretation of the 
Master-Teacher’s exposition of the Divine Law has led man to 
believe that he had full liberty to commit all manner of evil, 
seemingly with the full sanction of the priesthood (ministers 


SONS OF GOD 103 





and clergymen of all denominations), for were these not the 
leaders of the people, ambassadors and mediators for the lowly 
Nazarene, Jesus, and did they not teach “salvation by faith” and 
“forgiveness of sins?” For this reason, evil has been the min- 
istering angel to deluded and illusioned mankind these thousands 
of years and will continue so to be until man awakens to his 
birthright and his responsibility and to the absolute and un- 
deniable fact that it is impossible through belief in a person- 
ality, regardless of how sublime and irreproachable the life of 
that personality may have been, to win salvation—the Immortal- 
ity of the Soul and the forgiveness—the counteracting—of his 
sins—his evil thoughts and desires and deeds. 

Faith is the beginning of the exalted life. But not through 
faith alone, even though it be sincere and sublime, can man 
attain to Immortality. Only as faith is an incentive to obedi- 
ence to the Divine Law and the consequent Illumination of the 
Soul, can man win the Consciousness of Sonship with the 
Father. 

Man is born a personality. The personality must become 
submerged in the individuality—must give birth to it. Each 
one is individually responsible for that which he thinks, desires 
and commits. There can be no plea of having been forced to 
any act or that others did likewise. Man deals only between 
himself and his God, and every act that concerns another human 
being LIKEWISE CONCERNS GOD, the Creator of himself 
and that other. That of which others are guilty, whether good 
or ill, is not the example by which we may govern our acts. 
Our one guide, the one exact Law to follow, is embraced in the 


question: ‘What is the command of the Divine Law? Under 





104 SONS OF GOD 





that Law, will my deed be harmful to another or to myself? 
Will it bring loss or sorrow to others or to myself?” If the 
answer is positive, then the act is prohibited and to commit it 
is to call into action the Retributive Law of Justice. Alone in 
obedience to the Divine Law is there safety; the Divine Law 
alone is the guide to life and action, the Giver which can confer 
iife here and life eternal or death, not only of the body but 
of the Soul. 


“For all they that take the sword shall 
perish with the sword.’—Matt. 26:52. 


Here we have a most clearly defined statement of the 
principle of the Divine Law. It is absolute in that it unquali- 
fedly maintains that as we do unto others so shall we be done 
by. To claim that this law has reference only to murder and 
to war, is mistakenly to limit it in its application. This law 
embodies a principle that governs every action of which man is 
capable. All the misery and suffering under which humanity 
is bowed down are the result of the reaction of this Divine fiat; 
they do mot come because God punishes man or desires to see 
him suffer; they are directly due to man’s disobedience to the 
dictates of the Divine Law. Man constantly and eternally pun- 
ishes himself, brings upon himself the reaction of his own 
misdeeds. 

The principle stated by Matthew has reference to all the 
actions of life. Just as he who needlessly—that is, not for 
defence—takes the life of another, is in danger of losing his 
own life in like manner or by violence, so he who cheats is more 
than likely to be defrauded by someone on the same plane as 
himself, and he who steals is liable to suffer a loss in the same 


SONS OF GOD 105 





manner and at a time when he least is able to bear it. In the 
same way, he who takes advantage of the weak or ignorant is 
certain to meet with the reaction in the form of being forced 
himself to suffer or to see a loved one bear suffering while he 
is powerless to prevent it. 

The Law is absolute and inviolable. None can escape 
its action nor free himself from it except by counterbalancing 
the Law through deeds constructive in their effect. All of man’s 
losses, misery and suffering are due to his bondage to the un- 
sanctified desires of his carnal self. 

The Law is not hard and not difficult to comply with for 
the reason that it is not an evil to gratify those desires for things 
which are not harmful in themselves and therefore cannot bring 
harm or sorrow either to the self or to others. Man is in no 
wise forbidden any pleasure which is harmless in itself; nor is 
he supposed to live in self-denial except in respect to things 
which are not for the good of himself and others. 

In this Law we find the standard of life. The question, 
both sane and reasonable, always must be: “I desire this thing; 
I feel it will give me satisfaction and joy in the taking. Will 
the gratification be hurtful to myself or to any other? Will it 
bring sorrow or loss?” If the answer is that injury, loss or 
sorrow will not result from it, then man is free to enjoy it to 
the full. 


“Therefore all things [italics ours] whatso- 
ever ye would that men should do to you, do ye 
even so to them for this is the law and the 
prophets.”—Matt. 7:12. 


This is a restatement of the identical law given in Matt. 
26:52, though worded less positively. In these two expositions 


106 SONS OF GOD 





of the Divine Law we have before us “the law and the prophets” 
—they furnish a complete code of action. Were all men to 
hold before themselves this standard for all action, there would 
be no hatred in the heart of man for no man seeks to be hated; 
there would be no robbery for who desires to have his posses- 
sions taken from him? Murder would cease, since no man 
himself wishes to be slain or have his loved ones violently taken 
from him; there would be no exploitation, as even the most 
wretched and cold-blooded human has love for his own flesh 
and blood and would not have them used for profit or gain; no 
longer would profit be wrung from the labor of the innocent, 
the innocent of one’s own household being protected. Battle- 
fields would be sown with grain for food for the millions; 
swords would be turned into implements of agriculture; jails, 


no longer the happy hunting grounds for the profits of political 


henchmen, would become schools wherein the inmates would be 
taught the law of life; navy yards would be manufacturing 
plants for ships of commerce and schools for the training of 
seamen. 

Were these expositions of the Divine Law obeyed—they are 
Divine Laws and as ancient as mankind, simply having been 
restated by the disciples (students) of the Master-Teacher— 
men would seek to do right either because they believed in 
justice to all or for their own selfish sakes, for the protection of 
themselves and their loved ones. All men are born with equal 
possibilities and if all men sought the one goal—the greatest 
good for the greatest number—then all men would become equal 
before the Creator and the Universal Brotherhood of Man, 
which is the Christic or Manistic or Millennialistic age, would 





SONS OF GOD 107 


be established. Religion, as now preached and understood, 
being a creed and not a life plan, would not exist, for all men 
would live as ordained by God; their religion would be mani- 
fested in their service, their work or their profession; conse- 
quently, religion would be their habitual manner of life and 
their unconscious type of thought. 

The one phase of the Divine Law which man has not yet 
been able to grasp, because of the gross misrepresentation of it 
by those who have claimed to be teachers or expounders of the 
Law, is that he must become subject to the principle of love— 
the spiritual essence or emotion underlying all just, kindly and 
compassionate acts; this principle of love always has been con- 
fused with the feeling existing between man and woman, parents 
and children. Because of the Divine essence of this spiritual 
principle underlying the Divine Law, if a man has hate in his 
heart for another, even if ever so secretly, through the action 
of the Law and one of its manifesting phases which we term 
“attraction,” he will draw to himself, from some source or an- 
other, the elements or forces of hatred. Under the same mani. 
festation of the law, if a man cheats another, even though the 
one defrauded be not aware of it, the guilty one himself will be 
cheated or, in some form, suffer loss in like proportion, with the 
addition of the accumulated interest, for it is not always on the 
same day or in the same year that the Law of Compensation 
reacts upon him and, such is the Law, or what we term “fate,” 
that his loss will come when he is least able to bear it. Again, 
if man is the cause of suffering to another, either he himself or 
someone dear to him will feel the penalty of an outraged law. 


It reasonably may be asked: How can the Law be just and 


108 SONS OF GOD 


yet make another than the one directly guilty suffer? The 
answer is: All are under the Law and since all men as yet are 
in error, it may be that a loved one is equally guilty of an in- 
fraction of the Law and man is made to suffer the more deeply 
by being forced to witness the agony of the loved one who is, 
nevertheless, essentially as guilty as he though by a different 
act committed at another time. 

The Law is absolute and irrevocable; it embraces or en- 
circles every act of which man is capable. Whether man works 
good or ill, he will be certain to receive payment in like measure. 
This is stated emphatically by the exposition of the Law which 
states that he that taketh life by the sword shall perish with the 
sword. 

Once we comprehend this spirit of the Law, would it not 
be better for us to obey the Law in the first instance and thus 
avoid the penalty rather than attempt defiance of its dictates 
and, by ignorance or wilfulness, constantly be paying old debts 
and at the same time be prevented from advancing in the realm 
of true life, from achieving our ideals and the attainment of 
happiness ? 

Erroneously men have been led to believe that the chief 
aim and end of life is to gain honor, fame and fortune or some 
of the many other things or conditions usually considered essen- 
tial to the obtainment of happiness. This has been humanity’s 
gigantic mistake. Man’s highest duty is service to those less 
advanced than he. Through such helpfulness, he himself will 
gain deeper enlightenment, find greater pleasure and be given 
more power than otherwise possible, all without the attachment 
of a penalty, although to obtain the rewards may require a 





SONS OF GOD 109 





somewhat greater length of time than if he labored selfishly. 
This delay, however, is offset by the fact that what he now 
possesses he has righteously earned and it cannot be successfully 
taken from him. 

The formulated principle underlying exact action as voiced 
in the behest, “Do unto others as ye would that they should do 
unto you,” is so inclusive that it embraces all the command- 
ments. It is the fundamental of true, undefiled, redemptive 
religion. This statement was not original with the Master- 
Teacher, the Sixth Messenger or Son of God. Sixteen hundred 
years before the Master-Teacher’s time, there was a saying 
among the Egyptians: ‘He sought for others the good he de- 
sired for himself. Let him pass on.” This indicates clearly 
that that other Son of God, the Fifth Messenger, had gone a 
step further and deliberately had made effort first to secure 
for others that which he desired for himself. In other words, 
he willingly had served others before either expecting or desiring 
the just remuneration for his act or deed—unlike the application 
of the man-made mandates whereunder men seek first for all 
they can accumulate and care very little if at all for the rest 
of mankind. 

If man should try to help others to obtain those qualifica- 
tions or possessions which he desires for himself, they would 
be assured to him, since, under the Divine operation of the 
Law, he cannot, even if he would, do for others without sharing 
fully in the benefits. Whether our deeds be good or non- 
desirable, the principle is absolute: whatever we bring or give 
to another ultimately must come to us also. 


Thirty-four hundred years before our time, when the Hindu 


110 SONS OF GOD 


kingdom was in the process of establishment on the Ganges, it 
was written: ‘The true rule of business for men is to guard 
and to do by the things of others as they do by their own.” And 
churchanized nations derisively call these people “heathen.” 

What a contrast between the application of such a principle 
in business dealings and that of our present enlightened (?) 
age! Then the interests of others were jealously guarded. Now 
each man knows of no care save of his own personal interests 
and his affairs must be pushed forward irrespective of loss to 
others or of how many victims may be in his path. Not a 
thought is given to the glories of motherhood, the sacredness of 
unborn infants, the virtues of the innocent, the holiness of the 
home. Men, women, children and hearthstones must be sacri- 
ficed to the success of one man’s business or an association of 
men’s businesses. The profits must be the aim—the piling up 
of dividends paramount to all else. This is literally true in all 
the business affairs of men, even in the publication of magazines 
which, though ostensibly for the education and benefit of the 
readers, accept for money and publish false, lying advertise- 
ments which offer the public that which is not for that public’s 
good. And what is at the end of life for all these? Death 
and darkness. The utter annihilation of the personality. A 
return of the body to the earth, to the elements whence it came, 
and of the Divine Spark to the Father—even their “‘one talent” 
had been buried in filth and morass. These men of affairs can 
take nothing with them on their journey; the profits remain 
behind for those to enjoy who made no effort for and who had 
no anxiety in their accumulation. 


Twenty-five hundred years ago, Lao Tzu, one of the 


SONS OF GOD 111 





“heathen Chinese,” to use the current phrase, wrote: “Requite 


injury with kindness,” and ‘To the not good I would be good 
in order to make them good.” Consider the source of these 
injunctions, a source from which, according to our ideas, no 
good can come because Lao Tzu was not Christianized; then 
compare his counsel with our penal code—its floggings of sick 
men, its lynchings, and the brutal abuse, in a multitude of 
ways, of the prisoners, not to mention the unholy gains to those 
in charge obtained by the denial of proper food to the millions 
of unfortunates within the prison walls. 

The law as taught by Hermes, the Thrice Wise, was, “As 
it is above, so is it below.” According to this inculcation, older 
than the first and greatest of the Egyptian civilizations, the laws 
of country and state should harmonize with the Divine Law, 
otherwise their establishment (state, country, and their laws) 
cannot be permanent. Therefore, all methods of treatment ap- 
proved and applied to all unfortunates, should be corrective— 
not brutality based on hatred, malice, revenge and the thought 
of profit, as at present obtains in practically all our penal institu- 
tions, a procedure directly and violently opposed to the Divine 
Law, in that it is destructive rather than constructive and 
elevating. 

This exposition of the Law does not by any means indicate 
that the criminal and those who manifest criminal tendencies 
should be turned loose on society at large. Its understanding 
and intelligent application would turn our jails and peniten- 
tiaries into educational institutions where trades and a com- 
prehension of the laws of life and ethics would be taught; into 
hospitals for the healing of minds and the eradication of the 


112 SONS OF GOD 


a 


poisons of hatred, malice and revenge; into places wherein 
would be taught the principles of right and justice and the in- 
culcation that the wages of sin is death—this teaching being 
done by men and women who themselves are free from degrad- 
ing passions and have at heart the good of humanity. 

No criminal ever has been reformed through the brutality 
of modernly applied methods of correction or punishment. The 
average criminal already is bitter against organized society and 
possibly with just cause; further to brutalize him is to destroy 
yet more of his better nature that may yet remain and actually 
to make his reformation impossible. 

Man remains an animal only so long as he is ruled by the 
animal senses. Once he comprehends that it is for his own best 
interest to change these lower tendencies, then there is definite 
hope for his reestablishment in society. This comprehension 
never can be brought about through the medium of brutality or 
the instillation of fear. Fear holds men in check only so long 
as they believe there is something of which to be afraid. Re- 
habilitation to man’s estate must come through education, 
through an intelligent system of training and through humane 
help which the criminal instinctively feels is based on love for 
humanity. Men, except the thoroughly degraded, can be ap- 
pealed to through the better side of their nature and then taught 
that it pays, individually and collectively, to do right despite the 
examples constantly before them of those who, though wholly 
unworthy, receive reward, honors and high position. 

Men cannot be made good by caging them like wild beasts, 
by cruelty and hatred and the refusal of sufficient food fit to 
eat and clean and sufficient clothing. Yet this treatment is just 


SONS OF GOD 113 


what organized society, contrary to all the doctrines of the lowly 
Nazarene (doctrines which society so succinctly confesses), has 
been guilty of since history is written. 


Men can be reformed, that is, changed, by educating them, 
treating them humanely and proving to them by actions, not 
mere words, that they are human and that within each one of 
them there is, as in all men, a potential divinity. The profes- 
sional reformer and the political appointee cannot do this work. 
They apply one rule of life to the criminal and select for them- 
selves a life quite contrary, and this discrepancy is seen and felt 
most quickly and keenly by the acute sense—the animal 
instinct—of the criminal and the criminally inclined. 


The Greeks, 1070 B. C., came very near the exact wording 
of the Law as expounded by the Master-Teacher: “Do not 
that to thy neighbor which thou would take ill from him.” 


Men at the present time are in no wise considerate of the 
welfare of other men, having at heart only their own benefit 
and aggrandizement. The question is not “What can I do for 
you?” It is, “How may I ‘do’ you?” Business firms today 
shout the slogan, “Service!” and the “Service Bureau” is a 
thoroughly organized “feature” of practically all mercantile or- 
ganizations, offering to patrons and customers a wide variety 
of accommodation without any charge and yet, when the truth 
is known, this generosity on the part of the firms is merely a 
selfish application of a high principle. Service is the bait and, 
in the last analysis, the customer’s good is not the thing really 
sought but the firm’s profit: were there not profit in free service 
it would not be given. The Divine Law, under which all men, 
sooner or later, must come, whether they will or not, is What is 


114 SONS OF GOD 





best for all? Comprehension of the Law is to know without 
even the shadow of a doubt that, exactly as we do to another, 
so ultimately shall it be done unto us. This is certain and true, 
not because God either rewards or punishes, but due to the fact 
that every act of which we are conscious—a deliberate action— 
sets in motion a force that returns to us laden with exactly what 
we sent out. This is not advocating that the laws under which 
men now live and act should be set immediately at naught. 
Such precipitate and arbitrary action would establish anarchy 
and bring chaos, as fully illustrated in Russia. Men must be 
taught the Divine Law, and inconsistent and unjust enactments 
gradually should be eliminated entirely or replaced by such as 
are harmonious with the Divine Law. 


The early Hebraic law taught us the same truth. In a 
parchment believed to be of some twenty-five hundred years 
ago, it is written: ‘““Whatsoever you do not wish your neighbor 
to do to you, do not that to him,” and appended to this state- 
ment, the conclusion, “This is the whole law. The rest is mere 
exposition of it.” If this may be accepted as a reliable index 
to their standards, then the Hebrews of that age were far wiser, 
more just and certainly more fully Christianized than we of the 
present civilization. They recognized and taught that which 
mankind generally has ignored, namely, that all reform, irre- 
spective of its nature, must begin with the individual. As with 
the individual, so with the family; as with the family, so the 
village; as the village, so the town; as the town, so the city; as 
the city, so the state and, finally, as the state, so the Nation. 


If men would obey this one injunction and, in the affairs 
of their lives, actually apply the principle, then there would be 


SONS OF GOD 115 


no injustice, either to themselves or to others, and the Divine 
Law would function for the welfare of all of God’s children. 


Confucius advised: “What you would not wish done to 
yourself, do not unto others.” 


This is no more than a restatement of the 
Law as taught by the rest of God’s Messengers— 
Sons—and is a clear indication that all those of 
God’s children who obey the Law, live the life 
and who reach Illumination, comprehend the 
Law in the same sense, recognize it in the same 
spirit and promulgate it in almost identical 
language. Time, race, space and creed have no 
influence. They are the first Sons of a New Age 
and, as such, receive the spirit of the Law di- 
rectly from the Godhead—the Father. 


In the earliest written manuscript of Ptah Hotep in Egypt, 
dating to 5500 years ago, approximately 3550 years before the 
time of the Nazarene, is found this inculcation: “If thou be 
among the people, make for thyself love the beginning and end 
of the heart.” Can a thinking, reasoning, justice-loving mind 
continue to wonder why the angels directed ’ -seph to take the 
babe who was to become a Son of God i. to Egypt for training 
and instructions? And is it surprising that the entire doctrine 
as preached by both John and the Master-Teacher was based 
so completely on the puilosophy of love? Surely it is time for 
unbiased minds to give credit where credit belongs and to get 
away from the wholly erroneous idea, so long fostered selfishly 
by churchism, that the enlightened Egyptians were a “‘heathen”’ 
people. Let all who seek the kingdom of heaven bear in mind 
this one indisputable fact: When they stand before the judg- 


116 SONS OF GOD 





ment throne, all sham is discarded; self-opinion there receives 
no consideration; all peoples of all nations are judged for what 
they are, not for what others think they are, and the people of 
various nations and colors who have accepted the Christian faith 
receive no special consideration. 


Just as true and certain as that he who lives by the sword 
shall perish by the sword, so is it equally true and certain that 
he who is guided by love shall be received in love. The house 
that is erected upon a firm foundation shall stand firm against 
the violence of all storms; that which is built upon the sands 
shall be swept away by the first tempest. Similarly with the 
life lived in harmony with Divine Law: it is certain to find 
completeness of life and to live to all eternity, for love is at 
once the beginning, the aim and the end of a true life. In love 
and through love all things become possible. Love is the Light 
on the path that leads from the beginning of the earth-life, the 
experience-life, toward Conscious Individualization, the Im- 
mortalization of the Soul, the life eternal. 

The Christic admonition, formulated by the Master- 
Teacher to meet the age and the people in the country wherein 
he labored, reads thus: ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy- 
self.” It seemingly is taken for granted by many that the 
word “neighbor” limits one’s duty, but in the sense the word 
was used by the Master-Teacher it has in mind all that Ptah 

iotep taught. If one can establish love in the heart for the 
neighbor, one also is able to have love for all mankind. Love 
is not limited (except in a conjugal sense) to persons or locality, 
nor yet to race or creed. Love is an emotion of the Divine, of 
the pure heart, and is universal. The love which is for the 


SONS OF GOD 117 





neighbor at one’s side may be a selfish love for the reason that, 
generally, he is loved only because he has been of help or com- 
fort or profit, and such is not actually Jove for the neighbor but 
is love of the self because based on self-interest. 


At the first Buddhistic Council held at Rajagriha, 466 
B. C., the scribes almost duplicated the command of Egypt’s 
priest by their enunciation of the law of service: “One should 
seek for others the happiness one desires for oneself.” 


Under the operation of the Divine Law, we receive accord- 
ing to our help or service to another, the only difference between 
the act and the reward being that, through the reactionary 
operation of the law, we ultimately receive twofold. Conse- 
quently, when we seek happiness for others, we set into motion 
vibrations which bring us the very things we would bring to 
others. The mere fact that others refuse to accept that which 
we would give them does not in any way invalidate the Law. 
It is what we ourselves do without an ulterior motive that 
counts, and not what others accept or refuse. 


A century and a half before the beginning of the Christian 
era the law of Rome once more repeated the theme: “The law 
imprinted on the hearts of all men is to love the members of 


”) 


society as themselves.” That the Romans themselves did not 
heed the admonitions of this Divine injunction in no wise off- 
sets the truth stated. The fact that men do not obey a law 
does not nullify the Law. The Law zs and continues to operate 
whether men obey or not. If men obey the Divine fiat, theirs 
will be the reward; if they disobey, then the punishment meted 
out by the Law will be their portion. The Law continues to 


function even though all men should attempt to defy it. 


118 SONS OF GOD 


When Alexander of Macedon marched into Persia, 334 
B. C., he found himself face to face with the inscription which 
had been the foundation of Zoroaster’s philosophy: “Do as you 
would be done by.” 


Since in all countries and in all ages we find these sublime 
and identical expositions of the Divine Law, why is it we find 
men almost universally practicing their opposite—cheating their 
fellow men, exploiting the weak and innocent and warring upon 
one another. Men do these things because they yet believe and 
feel that it is to their interest to do so. 


The majority of men, in fact, all, with a very few excep- 
tions, feel that these expositions of the Divine Law do not apply 
to them, that they belong strictly to the church, that it is for the 
church to obey these injunctions and that the churchmen may, 
on their part, set aside the fiats of the Law in so far as men 
generally are concerned and, that instead of the multitudes— 
the laity—coming within the Law, there is a special dispensa- 
tion which they know as the forgiveness of sin, the vicarious 
atonement, justification by faith. It is the fault of the church, 
of all churches and the churchmen, that humanity today, as 
never before, is struggling under a weight of injustice and mis- 
fortune which daily is becoming heavier and leading nearer to 
the destruction of the race. Men have been led to believe that 
if they accept and profess religion it is all that God asks of 
them and that the church will take care of the rest for them. 
This falsehood on the part of orthodoxy and this blunder on the 
part of the mass, is humanity’s greatest curse, a curse which the 
New Age comes pledged to eliminate. 


Men no longer actually care for religion as taught to them, 


SONS OF GOD 119 


for the reason that they intuitively feel the sham of the ex- 
pounded letter, think that even the principles set forth do not 
apply to themselves and their actions. They must be made to 
understand that the Divine Law is not limited to or even remote- 
ly connected with what is accepted as orthodoxy; that religion 
is not the author of the Divine Law; that this Law is constantly 
operating whether man realizes it or not, and that it will con- 
tinue to function though all men attempt to ignore its action. 
Men must be awakened to the comprehension that to violate any 
Law underlying order—whether on the business, social or 
economic plane—is a defiance of THE LAW OF BEING and 
must inevitably bring retribution and this, despite anything 
that man believes or refuses to believe, and despite all that 
church or society may preach or may denounce. 

Manisis, Seventh Messenger of the Lord God Jehovah, 
Father of Light, forerunner of the New Dispensation, has come 
in the mission of teaching men that the Divine Law is eternal 
and far greater than all the established religious forms; that 
the Divine Laws are not laws of religion but spiritual fiats and 
belong neither to creed, sect nor doctrine; that they are universal 
principles which actually control, not the acts and deeds of 
men, but the OUTCOME of all things of which man is capable; 
that they are the wings of the messenger which brings to those 
who obey, happiness and success and all that is lasting. 

The law of gravitation is a Divine Law though not thought 
of as religious. The ethical law is as truly Divine as that of 
gravitation; yet, neither of these can be considered as religious 
except in the sense that they are absolute, that they are based 
on right, which is justice, and that they are from God—the 





120 SONS OF GOD 





Creator. The Divine Laws which govern the OUTCOME of 
man’s action and his relationship with his fellow man are as 
impartial, as just and as absolute as is the law of gravitation; 
and, as neither the will nor the faith of one man or any group 
or groups of men can possibly set aside the law of gravitation 
or cause it to function adversely, so men are just as powerless 
to reverse the Divine Law in respect to reward or punishment 
for the acts they commit. 


Religion is not a creed, a dogma, a faith in which to believe. 
It is the plan of life, the incentive of correct everyday action. 
Religion is life itself. Man must be brought to the realization 
that God is not afar off; not a judge of our acts after our life 
is lived; not a being who condemns or rewards according to 
our thoughts, desires and deeds. Man must realize that God 
is the good (the kind, humane, just principle) residing in man 
and that the more of these graces man possesses, the nearer 
he is to God. Did not the Master-Teacher repeatedly say, 
“Ye men are the temples of the living God?” 

This constructive principle which we term “good’—for 
want of a better word—will more and more make itself felt as 
man lives in harmony with the Will of the Father (i. e., the 
Divine Law) until he finally awakens to the consciousness that 
he is in truth a Son of God, one with the Father, in touch with 
the power of the Creator, a sharer of all good things with himn— 
of health, happiness and what men term success. 

Tolstoi, the Russian philosopher, who would have been the 
saviour of his countrymen (had they obeyed his inculcations) 
and thereby the saviour of thousands who were brutally raped 
and butchered by raving, soulless, godless mobs, wrote: 


SONS OF GOD 121 





“The law of human life is of such a nature that the im- 
provement of life, of the individual as well as of society, is 
possible only by inward moral perfecting [internal, spiritual, 
1. €., Soul development]. Whereas all the efforts of men to im- 
prove their life by external influence and coercion serve as the 
most effective propaganda and example of evil, and therefore 
fail not only to improve life but, on the contrary, increase the 
evil, which, like a snowball continually grows larger and larger 
and more and more powerful and removes people from the only 
possibility of truly improving their life. 

“All things, therefore, whatsoever ye would that men 
should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the law and 
the prophets.’ 

“When an evil occurs, as in the case when war is declared, 
all men are ready to take sides and when their loved ones are 
slain or worse and the war is over, then they start to blame 
every one but the right one, namely, themselves. Men do not 
see [comprehend| that as they singly and collectively uphold 
any form of law [legislation], they are each individually guilty 
of that very crime, provided it ends in crime as war always does. 
Men are prone to act for the worse and then blame others for it, 
when, had they followed the Golden Rule, such a thing could 
not have occurred. It is thus with all people, even with the 
laborers. They are exhausted, crushed, enslaved, only because 
for some miserable advantage | over their fellow men, as in close 
combinations of Unions from which equally good workers are 
excluded, always under a misconception of the spirit of eternal 
law], they themselves ruin their own lives and the lives of their 
brothers. Were each and every one to uphold the Golden Rule, 





ig? SONS OF GOD 





the working man would soon be one of the most independent 
and favored of the gods, of all men. 

“Two thousand years ago, a law of God became known 
[ov was restated| to men, the law of reciprocity, that one should 
act unto others as one wishes to act to oneself. 


“This law is so simple, comprehensible to everyone and 
obviously gives the greatest welfare possible to man. And, 
therefore, it would seem that as soon as men had learned this 
law they ought immediately, as far as possible, to fulfill it them- 
selves and to use all their powers to teach this law and its ful- 
fillment to the rising generations. 


“Especially would it seem that the men of our Christian 
world ought to act thus, recognizing as they do, as the chief 
divine revelation, that gospel in which it is explicitly taught 
that in this law ‘is all the law and the prophets’; that is, all the 
teachings that are necessary for man or for the salvation of man. 


‘And yet, almost two thousand years have elapsed and 
men not only refrain from fulfilling this law and from teaching 
it to their children, but, in most instances, they do not them- 
selves even know it or, if they do, they regard it either as un- 
necessary or as impractical [all because those who took upon 
themselves of their own human selection instead of Divine ap- 
pointment, the mantle of the true Priesthood, submerged the 
Divine inculcations almost beyond resurrection and in their 
place substituted the erroneous and Soul-destroying doctrines 
known as Salvation by Faith, Vicarious Atonement and Justifi- 
cation by Faith—doctrines never taught nor countenanced by 
any Son of God or by the Master-Teacher] ; and yet, unless this 
one great law is fulfilled, a universal religion [salvation of the 


SONS OF GOD 123 


people| or universal peace | millennium] cannot result. 


“The law of God is the law of God not because, as priests 
would affirm about their laws [/uman mandates|, it has been 
communicated in a miraculous way by God himself, but because 
it unmistakably and obviously directs men to that way of ad- 
vancing along the lines which unquestionably are delivering 
them from their sufferings, and unquestionably obtain the 
greatest inner and external welfare—not some few particularly 
chosen men but all men without exception. 


“Such is the law of God about acting towards others as one 
wishes that others should act towards oneself. It shows that 
men fulfilling it conscientiously obtain spiritual welfare in 
the consciousness of their harmony with the will of God, and 
of the increase of love in themselves and in others; and that 
at the same time they obtain in social life the greatest possible 
benefit accessible to them. Whereas, divergence from the law 
entails aggravation of their position. 


“The law of God is the law for this reason, that it defines 
the position of man in the world, showing him the ‘best’ that 
he can do for his spiritual as well as for his physical life in 
this position. 

“ “Be not anxious,’ said Jesus, ‘saying, What shall we eat 
or what shall we drink or wherewithal shall we be clothed? .. . 
Your heavenly Father [the Law] knoweth [recognize] that ye 
have need of ail these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of 
God [your inner—Soul—realm] and his righteousness [Soul 
consciousness as being one with God] and all these things shall 
be added unto you.’ 


“Tf man fulfills what God requires of him, if he observes 


124 SONS OF GOD 
pa cael SANS ok ea nS a AS ALRASE A OE RTS Sse i Oe 


his Law, then God also will do for him [through the reaction of 
the Law of Compensation] that which he requires. So that the 
law of doing to others as one would wish to be done to oneself 
relates to God also. For once man gets into harmony with the 
Father within, there is a certain power given to him which or 
through which, he obtains the things that he needs. 

“The principle of true religion is clearly expressed in the 
Gospel by the words: ‘Do unto others as thou wouldst wish 
that others should do unto thee.’ This is the whole of the 
law and the prophets. If this principle were recognized by all 
men as the chief religious fundamental, then egotism, which is 
the readiness to sacrifice a neighbor’s welfare to attain one’s 
own ends, would disappear of itself. So that I recognize solely 
the ignorance of the principles of true religion as the cause of 
evil in general and wars in particular. 


‘The only solution of the social problem for rational beings 
gifted with the capacity to love consists in the abolition of 
force and in the organization of a society founded on mutual 
respect and rational principles voluntarily accepted by all. Such 
a condition can be obtained only by the development of true 
religion. By this term, I refer to the fundamental principles of 
religion, which are: first, the consciousness of the Divine essence 
of the human Soul; and, secondly, regard for its manifestation. 

“Ve are the Sons of God.” 


That man is created in the image of the Supreme, that he 
may become like God in all things—in goodness, creative abil- 
ity, kindness, humaneness and constructive ability—this is the 
fundamental doctrine of the Manistic dispensation, the New 
Age, as it is of the Temple of the Illuminati and Church of 





SONS OF GOD 125 


Illumination, and is the precept upon which its entire philoso- 
phy and its principles are constructed. 


To become—it is a process of growth and not an accepta- 
tion in faith only—the Son of God, one must do that only which 
one’s awakened and enlightened conscience, the inner monitor, 
dictates. One must be willing and have the strength to do one’s 
duty as one sees it, and not shrink from it, irrespective of the 
seeming unpleasantness of the task. 


In the face of the now generally accepted postulate that 
man has been given free-will to choose to do as his conscience 
dictates, he no longer can plead with any real success that he is 
forced to do thus or so. If man is forced to admit that he is 
not master of his will, of himself, of his personality and of his 
action, let him consider whether any man other than himself is 
to blame. It is not probable that a man can come under the 
compelling power of another or others, unless he first has be- 
come a slave to them through his carnal desires, physical weak- 
ness or unlawful acts. If he is such a slave, then it becomes not 
at all difficult for other men to use him to their own interests 
and to his own degeneration and destruction or to the evil of 
others. He has cause to blame no one but himself, and God (the 
Divine Law) will hold him responsible just as certainly as he 
will condemn those who unrighteously use such a man. 


To attain the highest degree of manhood, man, in his work 
toward self-mastery, must not think of the selfish self. He 
must have in mind the attainment of all that is classified gen- 
erally as “good” and this “good” may be divided into kindly 
service, humaneness, helpfulness and constructiveness. Being 
thus engaged in upbuilding all the departments of human wel- 





126 SONS OF GOD 





fare, he will reap the benefits twofoldly. 


As a first step, we must think and live so as to gain the 
control, the mastery, over the lower, the carnal self. In the 
effort toward this accomplishment, we must carefully analyze 
our reason for the task in hand—whether it be for purely selfish 
motives or because we desire that the virtues and strength of 
God should manifest through us and thus be of self-help as 
well as of help to others. 


We must distinguish between the Self—the interest of the 
Soul—and Selfishness. Selfishness applies to that which we 
seek for ourselves alone and is the governing spirit in all the 
dealings of men today; it is that which we wish to gain, not for 
the good of any others but only for ourselves and the few close 
to us, even though this be at the expense of others. On the 
contrary, that which has to do for the Self is for the welfare of 
the inner being, the real man, and in its welfare we will attempt 
nothing that may bring the least harm, sorrow or loss to an- 
other,* but instead we will be of help to others in so far as 


*This statement must be qualified lest we and the new Dis- 
pensation Interpretation be considered erratic as regards the 
business world. Many, infinitely many, business affairs under- 
taken by the most honest of men end in great loss to all having 
part in the enterprise. This is especially true in about nine out 
of every ten companies formed for the mining of gold or other 
ore, drilling of oil and other ventures of this nature. When such 
companies succeed, the profits are great; when they fail, the 
losses are equally great. It should be understood that such ven- 
tures are honest if organized by honest and capable men, and 
are not condemned by the Divine Law although the success is 
based on chance. Nevertheless, those who are not able to afford 
a loss should take no part in such ventures; and, if loss does 
occur, those at the helm of such enterprises—being honest— 
cannot be held morally responsible; if they are dishonest, mis- 
represent the facts or misappropriate the funds, then they cer- 
tainly are morally responsible. This rule governs every business 
partnership, irrespective of its specific nature. 





SONS OF GOD 127 





possible and lead them on the Way. 


In the effort toward self-mastery and the attainment of 
Consciousness of Soul and Illumination man naturally is not 
travelling with the majority of his fellow men; in many in- 
stances he will be looked at askance if his habits do not conform 
to those of his associates. This may be at times unpleasant, 
but the important question is, whether he is in the right and 
working in harmony with the Divine Law. If he is, then, after 
all, he and God are a majority; for if God be with him, who 
can be (successfully) against him? 


Man should become conscious of the fact that, irrespective 
of all that has been taught, God, the Father, the Creator of man 
and all that is, seeks not the spoken praise of men. He is not 
desirous of loud prayers that come only from the lips and end 
not in service. He desires to be praised, not by words but by 
acts that harmonize with his own creative incentive; by man’s 
doing of the works that God is doing; and it is thus, by imita- 
tion, that man renders to God the deepest and sincerest praise. 


Spoken words of praise, even though they should reach to 
heaven, count for naught but to indicate man’s egotism and 
shallowness. Nor is a faith that does not culminate in works, 
acceptable or of actual value either to God or his children. It 
is in the thoughts, succeeded by desires and culminating in acts, 
that we truly praise God, and this is the only praise that is 
either desirable or acceptable to him—that is, to the Divine 
Law. 


First of all, we must seek to understand both the spirit 


and the action of the Divine Law. As we grow into such an 
understanding, we shall come into realization of the Love and 





128 SONS OF GOD 





the Power of God. In proportion as we are able to enter into 
the spirit of the Law, it becomes compulsory upon us to obey 
the Law and as we do this we truly worship the Father and all 
that is his. 


Throughout the domain of Nature there is strict obedience 
to the Divine Law and the manifestation of this obedience we 
term “the Law of Nature.’ The tree of a species is true to its 
nature and brings forth fruit ‘after its kind.” The rose tree 
praises both God and Nature by an abundance of blossoms, 
fragrant and lovely, symbolic of love and truth. The earth 
yields according to that which is sown within her bosom. But 
man, having free-will, the right of choice and the capacity of 
acting in any direction, alone proves false to his trust and de- 
grades every department not only of his own being but of all 


nature. 


With all his intellectual attainment, man yet remains 
ignorant of the fact that when he attempts to violate the Divine 
Law he harms none more than himself. He has not yet come 
into the realization that obedience to the Law will draw to him, 
without either pain or sorrow, all good things—all that he re- 
quires for the fulfillment of life. In his ignorance, he labors 
for himself alone, gives attention to all affairs which seem to be 
profitable to himself and foolishly believes he is preparing for 
the future. In reality, he is accumulating nothing that will be 
of value to him in time of need, not a virtue nor a strength that 
will help him as he passes through the Shadows. 

Man must be brought face to face with the realization that 
the Law under which he now works is the identical Law that 
will govern his resources in the future. He must comprehend 


SONS OF GOD 129 
a rerio ee ee Oe ee 


that only as he wholeheartedly becomes a part of the whole, 
laboring for the best interests of all, can he become truly a 
partner of the lasting things of existence and attain thereby the 
status of an individual. Only through the attainment of indi- 
viduality—yet devotion to the whole—is to be found Sonship 
with the Father—ultimate Godhood, man glorified. 


This is true religion! Not something to believe, not a 
creed nor yet a faith, but a method of life—a plan of action 
that brings results of lasting benefit to the Soul and likewise to 
the human, the personal self, in the world of affairs. If man 
lives rightly—correctly—on the Soul plane, he is assured de- 
sirable compensation on the material plane also. It is impos- 
sible for man to be harmonious with the interests of his Soul 
and remain a failure on the material plane. This being un- 
contradictable, true religion is seen to be a faith-science that is 
applicable, a practical course of action that brings tangible 
results—not rewards reserved for some far-off time and place, 
but benefits here and now. 


“Religion is the relation of man to eternal life, to God, in 
accordance with reason and knowledge, which moves [forces] 
man towards the end for which he was [in the remotest begin- 
ning| intended.” 


This forward urge, if not resisted, ultimately will bring 
men into touch of all power. The resources thus procured may 
be applied in obtaining all the requirements for the needs of 
the physical man, for the establishment of peace and content- 
ment of mind and Illumination of the Soul. This will build 
health, for in well-being there is joy; it will result in material 
success, for this is the birthright of all men. The Father denies 


130 SONS OF GOD 





nothing to the Son (or Sons) of which he is worthy and which 
may be used beneficially. Though we observe that even men 
who in no way obey the Divine Law are possessed of great 
abundance, it is nevertheless a fact that in some way and at 
some time they have earned this supply and have but now 
gained possession, either this, or they now have unrighteously 
obtained possession and sooner or later will be called upon to 
renounce their stewardship of that which does not justly belong 
to them and, in the Biblical phrase, “‘the last estate of that man 
becometh worse than the first.” 


The Soul of man is the light of man. Before he can see 
and follow this light he must obey the Law and gain Soul Con- 
sciousness. The Soul, which is a light, cannot give forth its 
rays until it is freed from the rubbish which hides it and this 
is accomplished only through the interior Illumination. In this 
the Soul is prototypic of a lamp well filled with oil, with a large 
wick and a great flame, but with the chimney covered with soot. 

Man universally is weak; he is ruled by the desires and lusts 
of the flesh; consequently, he is miserable. Though having the 
potentiality of a god, he is little more than an animal and the 
animal nature and the Divine nature of the Soul are in perpetual 
conflict. He will continue to be governed by the animal in- 
stincts until he seeks to know himself and, having found him- 
self, masters the animal tendencies and transmutes these into 
fuel for the vestal fires to be lighted on the altar within himself. 

When he has kindled this flame at the center of his being 
and has brought the Soul into a state of Consciousness, thence 
to Illumination, he has found the Christos, the Source of Eternal 
Life. Then he rightly may claim to be a Son of God and, in 


SONS OF GOD 131 





a lesser degree, he develops the creative power of the Father. 


It is this man-become-Godlike (that is to say, glorified, 
which means God-Illuminated, glory being a light or being en- 
lightened) that the Master-Teacher had in mind when he said: 
‘“., . the works that I do shall he do also and greater works 
than these shall he do.”—St. John 15:12. The man who has 
achieved Christhood naturally possesses power to the degree of 
his attainment and can direct this power for the benefit of 
mankind generally or for his own welfare. 


Man becomes a conscious being (a unit) by growing into 
the realization that though born a son of man he is become a 
Son of God, and that in proportion as he makes of his being a 
fitting dwelling place for the Father, he is in truth the Temple 
of the Living God and that, as he induces his mortal, animal 
nature to become compliant with the Will of these Divine forces, 
the Father will manifest through him. Thus will the Father 
do his works through the Son. 

The true and primitive Christic—and now Manistic—re- 
ligion is neither more nor less than a coming into full con- 
sciousness of man’s relation to God and God’s relation to man— 
the deepest and highest feeling, sensing 2nd knowing of which 
humanity is capable. This is not a creed and is not based on 
dogma; it is a definite consciousness; a state of being. It is not 
something to be studied and merely believed—accepted by the 
intellect; it is an experience, a becoming through gradual growth, 
by deliberate, constructive thoughts, by exalting desires and 
righteous (just, correct, ennobling) living, and by a constant 
transmutation of all the forces of the carnal, animal man, into 
the natural Divine man. This religion is the science which we 


132 SONS OF GOD 





apply for the awakening of the mind, for the arousing and de- 
velopment of the Divine Spark into a conscious Illuminated, 
Individualized Soul. And this science is based on the Divine 
Law which ultimately must govern all that is. 

Being born the son of man, we must gradually, and by suc- 
cessive steps, ascend from the lowest—the carnal, earthly, fleshly 
plane of being—to the highest round of the ladder. This is 
Consciousness of Soul attained through an intimate love in the 
heart for all that is noble, pure, constructive and for the welfare 
of all the children of men, good (wise) and bad (ignorant) 
alike. 


This religion, which is not a faith but a system, a method 
of living, enables man to attain the highest degree of power, 
knowledge and conscious life, because he first comes to an un- 
derstanding of the Divine Law and then bases all his efforts 
upon its inculcations, proceeding thus step by step until the 
highest degree of development is reached. 


This process, this religion, is practical. It takes into full 
account the fourfold nature of man: the physical or material; 
the mental or intellectual; the spiritual or life foundation; and 
the Soul, which is from God and may be Individualized into 
God-Consciousness. This last is the Great (Sublime) Work. 
Further, it is practical because the Law that it teaches estab- 
lishes health in the physical being, knowledge to the intellect, 
fuller life and greater vitality and energy to the spiritual, and 
absolute Illumination and sublime Consciousness to the Soul. 

The Manistic Dispensation is not come for the condemna- 
tion of persons. It is the result of a cyclic law which no man 
can control, which was set in motion in the beginning of time 


SONS OF GOD 133 





and which must continue to function as long as man and earth 
continue to exist. This New Age is come to establish the truth. 
Without favor and without fear, it condemns the acts of men 
and the conditions of life which are contrary to the Divine Law 
and which retard the progress of humanity as a whole. The 
New Era is inimical to no pleasure, recreation or possession 
which is not in itself destructive or harmful; and it inculcates 
all that leads to a more abundant life, greater unfoldment and, 
in consequence, to nobler manhood and gentler womanhood. 


All men are recognized as brothers, being born as the sons 
of men and under the one universal Law. Each man is a link 
in the one great chain of existence, weak or strong as the case 
may be, and, in the ultimate, the chain itself cannot be any 
stronger than its weakest link; therefore it behooves all men to 
help their brethren. 


The full (the real) man is he who recognizes that God is 
the Father of all men and that man’s highest estate is obtained 
by working toward Sonship with the Father through obedience 
to the Divine Law and, concurrently with his own growth, 
through helping other men less fortunate toward the same goal. 
It is clearly to be understood that man cannot come into such 
an inheritance with the Father unless he thinks, desires and 
acts in harmony with the dictates of the Law. Mere (blind) 
faith in the Fatherhood of God of itself never will bring about 
this Sonship. 

There is a pronounced distinction between true faith with 
its consequent results and a false or foundationless faith. When 
faith is a mere belief or a creed, as is universal in this age, man 
expects God, in exchange for his hypocritical prayers (confes- 





134 SONS OF GOD 


sions of today’s guilt repeated tomorrow), to fulfill his wishes, 
his smug supplications being little short of dictation to the Most 
High. He expects the Creator to become his servant and to do 
according to human desires, irrespective of how foolish or how 
destructive to himself, or possibly even to the race, they may be. 
True faith is an zxcentive to man to do the will of God by per- 
forming good (constructive) work. It teaches man to answer 
his own prayers (his heart’s desires) through personification, 
by intelligent application, of the Laws of Creation in the ex- 
ternal (mundane—earthly) plane of action. 


To become individualizations of the Divine nature, or 
Sons of God, we must constantly endeavor to become creators 
like him. This implies that we must be doers—workers, not 
mere believers; that we must think and desire and act har- 
moniously with God—the Divine Law. This admonishes us 
to be willing to help and forgive our fellow men. As for our- 
selves, we must be willing to be absolutely responsible for all 
our thoughts, desires and actions—we must seek for forgiveness, 
but be ready to pay the penalty to the uttermost farthing. We 
no longer may plead in extenuation of an action that we have 
been harmed, cursed or made to suffer loss through another or 
others. Though man hurls curses at God, God does not curse 
man in return. In reality, under the action of the Divine Law, 
no man can curse us unless we, because of the hatred or malice 
in our hearts, invite and accept that curse. Man curses himself 
and, through the reaction of the curse, under the Law of Com- 
pensation, he brings damnation upon himself. 


‘Then came Peter to him and said, Lord, 
how often shall my brother sin against me, and 
I forgive him? Till seven times? Jesus saith 


SONS OF GOD 135 


unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven 
times; but, Until seventy times seven.”—wMatt. 
18:21, 22. 


To comprehend the spirit of these words it must be borne 
in mind that when our brother (our fellow man) offends us or 
sins against us, it is but so in seeming, because nothing except 
that which we think, desire or do actually and permanently can 
injure us. Only for our own acts are we responsible and there- 
fore only for our own acts can we suffer. 


The Law itself must not be foolishly interpreted or mis- 
applied. It is the spirit of the debt or the offense or the sin that 
we forgive. For example, no one is called upon to forgive—that 
is, to forego the payment of—a material debt. To do that would 
bring chaos in the practice of fair exchange between men. 
The Law has reference to wrongs, to hatred, to malice and to 
other evils of like nature and does not offset the necessity for 
demanding justice or the remedial agency of punishment of evil 
but without the idea or desire of hatred, malice or revenge. 


If our brother (any man) does aught against us, it may 
be that we deserve it as a return for some acts of our own and 
that he, through the evil in his nature, is the medium whereby 
the Divine Law functions in paying us that which is due us. 
“T guess I had that coming to me” and “I got mine,” are slang 
phrases of the day that voice a deep truth. But even if that 
which is done against us be not deserved, then the enactor is 
punished by his own acts and we shall be compensated, in some 
way and at some time, for the sorrow, the loss or the pain 
brought upon us. Thus does the Divine Law justly “punish” 
or “reward” and we must ever be ready to forgive those who 
do aught against us. In this connection it might be argued 





136 SONS OF GOD 





that if the Law of Compensation is so exact and sure in its 
operation, why, for instance, seek justice by human action 
against the thief who steals our goods? In so far as we are 
concerned, might we not well leave the matter in the care of the 
Law? However, the offender must be considered, as also those 
who do not know the Law. Were we to take no action, the thief 
would feel that he could continue to live unrighteously and 
without fear of being called to account. It is therefore neces- 
sary to apprehend the offender, to bring him to account and to 
exact justice, not because of hatred, malice or revenge, but as a 
warning to him that it is neither right nor safe deliberately to 
infringe on the rights of others. In all human society, justice, 
without hatred, malice, revenge or profit, should be sought as a 
protection for the weak and the innocent. 


“Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened 
unto a certain king which would make a reck- 
oning with his servants. 


“And when he had begun to reckon, one 
was brought unto him which owed him ten 
thousand talents. 


“But for as much as he had not wherewith 
to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and 
his wife, and children and all that he had, and 
payment be made. 

“The servant therefore fell down and wor- 
shipped (supplicated) him, saying, Lord, have 
patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 

“Then the lord of that servant, being moved 
with compassion, released him and forgave him 
his debt. 

“But the same servant went out, and found 
one of his fellow-servants which owed him an 
hundred pence; and he laid hands on him and 
took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that 
owest. 

“So his fellow-servant fell down at his feet 
and besought him, saying, Have patience with 
me and I will pay thee all. 





SONS OF GOD Ley 





“And he would not; but went and cast him 
into prison till he should pay the debt. 


“So when his fellow-servants saw what was 
done, they were sorry and came and told unto 
their lord all that was done. 


“Then his lord called him unto him and saith 
unto him, Thou wicked servant, I forgave thee 
all that debt because thou desiredest me; 


“Shouldest thou not also have had compas- 
sion on thy fellow-servant, even as I had mercy 
on thee? 


“And his lord was wroth, and delivered him 
to his tormentors, till he should pay all that was 
due unto him. 


“So likewise shall my heavenly Father do 
also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not 
everyone his brother their trespasses.’’—WMatt. 
18:23-35. 


Here is no qualification as to whom we should forgive or 
how often. We must forgive all if we in turn seek to be forgiven. 
There is no virtue in the prayer which comes from the lips when 
forgiveness is not in the heart and, to tell our brother that we 
forgive him when the statement does not come from the heart, 
is to be guilty of falsehood. If the heart is free from all ill 
feeling, resentment and malice, then we have truly forgiven 
those who did ill against us, even though we do not confess it 
in words; for virtue is not in the profession but in the attitude 


of our inmost being. 


The Master-Teacher inculcated constantly the necessity of 
forgiving all the wrongs committed against us and that this 
forgiveness must proceed from the sanctuary within. The power 
of hatred, malice and resentment is in the fact that these pas- 
sions keep the Soul bound and do not permit it to see the 
Light; and for this reason no man can become the Son of God 
so long as there is hatred, jealousy or revenge domiciled in the 
heart of the son of man. 





138 SONS OF GOD 





To be forgiven any indebtedness that we owe others does 
not free us from the debt itself, but only from the intention of 
the act. The debt still remains and must be paid, but with the 
paying of the debt the record itself is wiped clean; if we are not 
forgiven for a wrong committed, even though we make repara- 
tion, the record remains; therefore it is necessary for us to for- 
give trespasses even as we seek to be forgiven. 


Before we can become Christic and know God and be per- 
mitted to enter within the temple of the living God, we must 
have learned to forgive all men. Unless we do this, the con- 
science within, that “‘still, small voice” which is awakened when 
the Soul is aroused to any degree of consciousness, will con- 
tinue to accuse us and condemn us. And there is no peace for 
man unless he makes peace with his own conscience. Only 
pride prevents man from doing the right; our pride, the satan 
of old, continually induces us to believe that to forgive freely 
or to ask for forgiveness lowers our dignity. The man with a 
clear conscience, free from self-accusation of wrong, does not 
recognize “dignity” unless it is the dignity of honor and strength, 
of justice and of doing right. Such dignity is that of the Father 
and glorifies manhood. 


“We know we have passed out of death into 
life because we love the brethren. He that 
loveth not abideth in death.—1 John 3:14. 


It is not faith in a creed even though the creed be faultless; 
it is not by upholding some special church that brings life; it 
is living in harmony with the Divine Law, obeying the dictates 
of the Father to fill the heart with love—a love that is strong 
enough to forgive—that leads to eternal life. As man awakens 
to this great truth and accordingly orders the affairs of his life, 





SONS OF GOD 139 


he becomes the church, the “bride” of God, for in him are all 
things. Man is the temple and as God is within the temple, 
man worships within by the attitude of his thoughts, the purity 
of his desires and the nobleness of his activities. This is the 
true service—the only worship. 

No man being sufficient unto himself, every man forming 
a part of the whole, it is well for men, even when they have 
reached Illumination, to be formed into an assembly and to 
erect symbolic buildings wherein they may meet and commune 
and, through outer forms of service, symbolize the process that 
has taken place within—that which they have become, though 
great care must be exercised that the symbol be not allowed to 
usurp the place of the spirit. 

To have love for our fellow man is to be willing to help 
him in every way possible; then our life shall be one of service 
and through our helpfulness and our labors we attain Immortal- 
ity of the Soul. He who has love for his brother is filled with 
life and as his love grows so shall he find greater life and 
become a part of the whole (become holy), which is becoming 
the temple of the living God. Thus, as we become perfect 
through this love, we attain to Sonship with the Father. 


« . .. love is of God; and every one that 
loveth is begotten of God and knoweth God. He 
that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is 
love.”—I John 4:7-8. 


The true life begins in love. Unless we love the truth 
(basic facts), we shall not seek for the truth (the path), and if 
we seek not, we shall not find, and if we find not, we cannot 
live. The beginning of all things, whether in heaven or on 
earth, is in love. Love for the pleasures of the flesh (the carnal 


140 SONS OF GOD 


self) will cause us to do those things which gratify the un- 
hallowed love of the flesh and therein is death. Love of the 
truth (justice, right and light) will lead us into the way of 
finding the Light which is the life. Love is therefore at the 
foundation of all things; it is the beginning of life as it is the 
beginning of death. 


“But whoso hath this world’s goods and 
seeth his brother have need and shutteth up his 
bowels of compassion [having no compassion in 
the heart] from him, how doth the love of God 
abide in him? My little children, let us not love 
in word, neither with the tongue, but in deed 
and in truth.”—1 John 3:17-18. 


Here we are introduced to the necessity of action. That 
which comes out of the mouth, words, counts for nothing. It 
is that which we do which alone is recognized, the relief we 
bring with the right attitude. If we say we love our fellow man 
and help him not in his time of need, then we are liars and the 
truth is not known to us. Nevertheless, though we make no 
confession of loving either our friends or our enemies, but help 
them as best we can when such help is required, then do we 
express our love—the will of God in us—and we know God and 
are known to him. 


Only by being of service to others as they have real need 
do we prove that we have the love of God in our hearts and 
that we are truly willing to obey the Divine Law. This is true 
religion; it is obedience to the Christic spirit within; it is the 
path to the Divinity of the Soul, to all that is eternal. Through 
such service as this did the Master-Teacher become the Son 
of God and, by his becoming, he indicated to others how they 
also might come into this inheritance through their love and 


SONS OF GOD 141 


ce 


service in the cause of humanity. He who does so love, has 
God within himself and it is from this that comes the power 
to heal the sick and do all manner of good deeds. 


“Ve are the temples of the living God,” should be written 
in letters of fire above the dwelling places of all men; and to 
have it so, it is only necessary that man should love his fellow 
man and obey the Divine command. “God is love” and whoso 
loveth his brother (mankind) has God within himself to the 
degree of his love. It then follows that if the C/ristos is with 
the Father and God is with those who love, then these become 
living Christs, the Sons of God. Such is Manisis, who has come 
to teach his brethren that they may know God. 


“God in me and I in you.” Thus, by obedience to the 
Divine Law, man attains unto Christhood, becomes the Son of 
God. “Love is of God; and everyone that loveth is begotten 
[the second birth] of God and knoweth God.” This statement 
is without qualification. He who loveth his fellow man and 
doeth accordingly comes into a knowledge of God; is possessed 
of the Christic power within himself; is, in truth, “the temple 
of the living God.” 


‘No man hath beheld God at any time; if we love one 
another, God abideth in us.”—I John 4:12. The flesh cannot 
behold the person of the Father. The flesh can see and under- 
stand only that which belongs to the flesh. But if man obeys 
the Divine Law; if he thinks, desires and acts in harmony with 
that Law; if he deliberately puts forth every possible effort to 
develop the spiritual essence within him, the Soul, then gradually 
he will grow into Consciousness. The personality will be trans- 
muted into the Individuality and through the Light that is with- 


142 SONS OF .GOD 





in himself he will be able to behold the Light (the fire) of God. 
This is the Illumination. The Father and the Son meet and 
commingle on the altar erected to God, which is within the 
temple. Thus the son of man becomes a Son of God. 


“Tf a man say, I love God, and hateth his 
brother [any man], he is a liar; for he that 
loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, can- 
not love God whom he hath not seen.”’—1! John 
4:20. 


All true growth begins through faith in God and his laws 
and the application of these laws in the acts of life. Therefore, 
the man who truly desires to become Illuminated, to be a 
conscious Son of God, a dynamic Christos, must commence his 
labors on the plane of being whereon he finds himself at his 
awakening to the desire for the higher plane of life. His first 
duty is, naturally, to himself. It is only by making changes 
within the self that he can learn to know the way and be able 
to demonstrate it to others. Such an aspirant will be faithful 
to the work he finds confronting him, irrespective of its nature. 
If but a laborer in the fields—the most exalted of all human 
endeavor though not so recognized—he will perform his duty 
well and with patience and bring forth food that others may 
live. While thus in the performance of his labor, he also may 
prepare himself for the greater work and, when he is ready, 
then the way will be opened for him. ‘Seek ye first the king- 
dom,” is the eternal Law and this kingdom is not found by 
idleness and the bemoaning of one’s fate and asking to be fed 
by the ravens. Only those who have been faithful and have 
merited the reward receive the food from heaven. 


As the Law reveals itself to man he must endeavor to obey 
it. With each attempt, greater power will accumulate to do 


SONS OF GOD 143 





greater works until finally man shall be master of those tasks 
which previously seemed impossible. He will find that it is 
not so difficult, after all, to love his fellow men, even those 
who hate him, for he has come to recognize that this hatred is of 
the flesh, the carnal self, and is due to ignorance of the Law, 
and that he who so hates will be punished (will punish or bring 
punishment upon himself) by reaping sorrow, sickness and 
ultimately death, and thus his former resentment is turned to 
great pity for these, his foolish brethren. 


Love is the Law. This is the eternal, unchangeable, Divine 
fiat. Through the passion of love we come to do the service 
required of us that we thereby may become that which we were 
destined to be. We cannot have the love of God in the heart 
until we first establish therein the love of mankind. There 
must be no distinction of race; all men were created under the 
same Law. We must recognize this fundamental fact and be 
in sympathy with mankind universally. Through this love and 
its fruits do we finally become Sons of God, inheritors of eter- 
nity, here and now. 


There is no other path except through love in the heart. 
Neither creed nor doctrine, neither ritual nor form, however 
sublime, can make us the children of God. Only through the 
potential force, love, and that in the heart whereby all things 
become possible, can we reach Soul Consciousness, Conscious 
Individualization, Sonship with the Father. 

Through our thoughts and desires, which lead to deeds 
and acts harmonizing with the dictates of the Divine Law, may 
we attain, and nowhere is there greater opportunity than in 
service to those who have less understanding than we. This 





144 SONS OF GOD 





was fully recognized by the Master-Teacher as is illustrated 
by the saying: “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the 
least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” 


God is not personally (figuratively speaking) in need of 
our services; but his creation, our brethren, do require our 
kindly services, guidance and ministrations. If we feed those 
who are hungry and are incapable of obtaining food, then we 
have done this unto God. It may be true that under the Divine 
Law they have brought their misfortune upon themselves, but 
this fact is in nowise an excuse for our neglect or indifference, 
for we have not the right to judge, not being set up in the judg- 
ment seat. On the other hand, if we, under a foolish miscompre- 
hension of the Law, feed and clothe those who are able-bodied 
and thus competent to procure their own needs, we are not doing 
his will, for we thus further weaken those who might be strong 
if thrown upon their own responsibility. 


“You have heard that it hath been said, An 
eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth; but I say 
unto you, Resist not him that is evil.’”—WMatt. 
5:38-39. 


To demand “‘an eye for an eye,” is to seek vengeance—to 
do to others as they do unto us. It means that we would return 
to them in kind. If they slander and defame us, we would 
slander and defame them. If others hate us, we would resent 
it and likewise hate them. If they wrong or injure us, we would 
bring loss to them and thus make “confusion worse confounded.” 
This is not the Divine Law. There is no virtue in returning blow 
for blow unless one seeks to establish hatred amongst men. 


The Law commands that we should give unto others, not 
that which they would give us but that which we would have. 





SONS OF GOD 145 





We need not concern ourselves with the acts of another, whether 
evil or otherwise. Our duty is ours alone and cannot lawfully 
be modified by the acts of others. Irrespective of what others 
may do, it is our duty to do only that which is for good; then 
shall we receive the fruits which give life; if we foolishly return 
evil for evil, we reap the reaction of the Law. 


Considered in the ultimate, our acts therefore actually do 
not concern others at all, but ourselves alone; nor do the deeds 
of others have power to injure us. If we return a wrong for a 
wrong, we have accomplished nothing more than (revengefully) 
to punish the wrongdoer and we reap the evil of the punish- 
ment (unjust because biased) meted out by ourselves and find 
ourselves the losers. We ever should have in mind the Divine 
Law: “What is that to thee? Follow thou me.” Our duty is 
between ourselves and God, and consists in service, for therein 
alone is their actual, because enduring, reward. 


The Master-Teacher continually impressed upon his dis- 
ciples the desirability of not resisting evil; he clearly taught 
that revenge is not for men to seek, but that “Vengeance is 
mine. I [tke Law| will repay, saith the Lord.” This does not 
even imply that God punishes the evil-do:r nor that he seeks to 
visit vengeance upon one of his foolish children, but that the 
Divine Law, being just and absolute, unbiased, impartial and 
continually operating, rewards or punishes, through its reactions, 
each one according to his thoughts, desires and acts. As a true 
prayer is, in itself, its own answer, so is the deed, the reward. 
Evil gives birth to more evil; kindness kindles greater kindness 
in human hearts; therefore, goodness (that which is creative of 
beneficial actions) alone is power. 


146 SONS OF GOD 


God punishes no one. Man, through the reactionary 
potency of his own deeds, either punishes or blesses himself. 
If aught comes to us which we consider evil, it may be accounted 
for by an act of ours of the long past, the recent past, or an 
investment which will bring us good. All men are therefore 
instruments of the Divine Law in the rendering of judgment. 
As the just man, through his works, is the bearer of blessings, 
so is the evilly inclined man, through his plagues, the dispenser 
of punishment to those of like nature. The Law is one. It is 
the varied application of the Law that produces the variously 
different results. 


The Master-Teacher inculcated the truism that he who has 
not taken up the cross (a cross or his own cross) has not re- 
nounced all and cannot be his disciple. (Luke 14:27.) In- 
terpreted, this is to say, that no one truly is qualified to enter 
the Path leading to Soul Illumination and Conscious Individ- 
uality—to follow the C/ristos—unless he is prepared to give up 
—transmute—all unworthy desires of the flesh in the cause of 
the Soul’s welfare, and also willing to accept the consequence 
of such renunciation. No man can follow the Path who is 
unwilling to obey the Divine Law, to exchange the carnal, 
grossly material life for that leading to Soul Development and 
ultimate Sonship. 

Non-resistance of evil is the refusal to countenance it. 
If we give evil recognition, as, for example, an evil thought, and 
fight it, it then assumes ever larger proportions and greater 
importance and creates more cause for fear. If we accept it as 
it is and, instead of attempting to rid the mind of its presence, 
we substitute a kindly thought or the memory of beautiful music 





SONS OF GOD 147 





or weave before the mind a beloved memory, then the evil 
thought must give place to the desirable thought. This is the 
method of substitution—it is the process of transmutation; it 
is obeying the command to “resist not evil.” 


“Ye have heard that it was said (Lev. 19:18), 
Thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine 
enemy. But I say unto you: Love your enemies 
and pray for them that... persecute you 
.. . for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil 
and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and 
the unjust. For if ye love them that love you, 
what reward have ye? Do not even the pub- 
licans the same? And if ye salute your brethren 
only, what do ye more than others? Do not 
even the Gentiles the same? Ye therefore shall 
be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” 
—Matt. 5:43-48 


The Father, who is the Creator of all, does not withhold 
the sunshine from some of his children because they disobey his 
work, permitting it to shine only upon those who are just and 
obey his Law. He permits his blessings to all who will accept 
them. His, not the duty to punish, but to be ready to help and 
to give. He (7. e., the Law) recognizes that men are continu- 
ally punishing themselves as a result of their disobedience, and 
the infliction of that one penalty is sufficient. 


The awakening man, he who is trying to comprehend the 
Law and to obey the command to become like unto the Father 
—seeking the way to Divine Illumination and Sonship—must 
do as nearly like the Father as lies within his power. For this 
reason, the aspirant who is sincerely seeking “the way, the truth 
and the life will not resist evil in the manner generally under- 
stood; he will pray (wish well) for those that persecute him, 
though he will not slavishly permit others to work injustice 
upon him, defraud him, violate his honor or exploit his chil- 





148 SONS OF GOD 





dren. Justice without bias, without hatred and without re- 
venge will be his slogan. 

If we love only those who love us and if we are kind to 
none but those who are kind to us, we do no more than the most 
degraded of mankind, for even they have those whom they love 
and who feel their kindness. If we seek to become Illuminated 
Souls, Sons of God, we must have love and kindly feelings for 
all, even for those who do us injury and who would betray us. 


To hate one’s enemy will not cause that enemy either to 
reform or become nobler, nor will it free him from his hatred 
for us. But if we ignore the evil he feels against us and if we 
send out love, the while actually feeling it within our hearts, 
then it ultimately will work miracles and the return to us is 
certain to be desirable. 


The first commandment is, “Be thou at peace with all 
men. Think of no man other than as you would have him 
think of you. If peace be destroyed, strive with all your 
strength to re-establish it, and there is no better way to do this 
than by making others feel that all is well so far as you are 
concerned. The service of God is the eradication of enmity. 
“Know [vecognize| that all men are brothers, and all are sons 
[may become Sons] of the one God; break peace with no man.” 


“Be ye merciful even as your Father is 
merciful.” To be prototypic of the Father [the 
personification of all that is good—desirable], 
we must embody and exercise the same traits; 
and in doing so, we naturally must show mercy 
to all men, friend and foe alike. Those who 
hate us, do so because they feel they have a 
good reason and know of no better way by 
which to protect themselves. They are in 
ignorance of the Divine Law and its action and, 
as a result, slaves to their carnal, mortal selves. 


“Judge not, and ye shall not be judged; and 





SONS OF GOD 149 





condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned. 
. .'—Luke 6:37-49. 


Man is responsible only for himself and within him there 
is one sitting in judgment upon him, and no other has a right 
to pass judgment upon his acts unless he offers them the oppor- 
tunity and gives them the right by defiance of the Law which 
counsels him not to judge, and by defiance of the rights of others. 


We have not the slightest right to judge our fellow men for 
their actions, for no man knows what is the incentive urging or 
even driving them to do that which we think we would not do. 
It is ours to forgive, not to judge, and it were well to have in 
mind the admonition of the Buddha: ‘To know all is to for- 
give all.” No man has been delegated the right to hold the 
acts of another in judgment, even when these are clearly in the 
wrong. Man’s action is only as between himself and his God, 
unless, of course, he interferes with the rights, privileges and 
liberties of others, in which case protective methods must be 
pursued and men selected for this purpose—to pass judgment 
as to the right and wrong. 

Our duty is to watch our own thoughts, desires and deeds. 
The Divine Law takes full cognizance of the mental and 
spiritual attitude of others and of the exterior manifestations. 
Each person is compelled to deal directly with the Law and not 
through the medium of another, unless, as already said, because 
“of gross defiance of right, corrective steps become necessary by 
those selected to protect the welfare of society. 

If we disobey the injunction and do judge our fellow men, 
then is that judgment written up against us by the Divine Law, 
identically in the same way as all our other misdeeds; and in 


150 SONS OF GOD 





the same spirit of judgment as we judge others we shall likewise 
be judged. For this very reason, it is the height of wisdom to 
heed the admonition of the Master-Teacher and “judge not” lest 
by the same unrighteous (unrighteous because unjust, for the 
reason that no one, unless he be divine, can know all the facts 
and every contributive cause for an act) judgment we be judged. 


Jesus was careful to enjoin all men to forgive others, that 
they also might have their trespasses forgiven. This same ad- 
monition is repeated again and again throughout the gospels. 
And why? Because every man’s thought of his fellow man is, 
though possibly most unconscious, a judgment upon that man’s 
acts. As we mingle with other people, we may learn a wonder- 
ful lesson by watching—observing—our own thoughts for the 
short period of one hour. Doing this generally proves to be a 
revelation. Every man, before bringing his offering of prayer 
for acceptance before the throne must pardon all who have 
trespassed against him. If he does not do this willingly and in 
the spirit of forgiveness, compassion and kindly feeling, then 
the gift is unacceptable to God and his own conscience is not 
truly appeased. Only those thoughts based in love are accept- 
able to the Law and prayer is the thought coming from the 
innermost recesses of the heart. 


In James 4:11 we are warned: “Speak not evil one of 
another, brethren. He that speaketh against a brother or 
judgeth his brother, speaketh against the law and judgest the 
law; but if thou judgest the law, thou are not a doer of the law 
but a judge. One only is the lawgiver and judge, even he who 
is able to save and destroy; but who art thou [any and every 
man] that judgest thy neighbor?” 


SONS OF GOD 151 





The Divine Law was instituted before men were and is 
above all men and all men come under its action. As all men 
are equally bound by the Law and as the Law is absolutely just 
and both judges and punishes all according to their thoughts, 
desires and acts, no man has any right to attempt the least 
interference with it by the egotistic incentive which induces him 
to judge his fellow men. 


“My brethren, hold not the faith of our Lord 
Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of 
persons. For if there come into your synagogue 
a man with a gold ring, in fine clothing and 
there come in also a poor man in vile clothing, 
and ye have regard to him that weareth the fine 
clothing and say, Sit thou here in a good place; 
and ye say to the poor man, Stand thou here or 
sit under my footstool; are ye not divided in 
your own mind? And become judges with evil 
thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren: Did 
not God choose them that are poor as to the 
world, to be rich in faith and heirs to the king- 
dom which he promised to them that love him? 
But ye have dishonored the poor man. Do not 
the rich oppress you, and themselves drag you 
before the judgment seats? Do not they blas- 
pheme the honorable name by which ye are 
called? Howbeit, if ye fulfill the royal law ac- 
cording to the scripture [according to that which 
is written], Thou shalt love thy neighbor [all 
men, rich and poor] as thyself, ye do well: But 
if ye have respect of persons [because of their 
appearance or power or possessions], ye commit 
sin, being convicted by the law as transgres- 
sors. For whosoever shall keep the whole law 
and yet stumble in one point, he is become 
guilty of all. [Man may be poor, honorable, vir- 
tuous, hard-working and keep all the command- 
ments, yet if he judge another, even the rich 
man, he is as guilty as the man who gained his 
possessions by the exploitation of women and 
children. Sin is sin. It is an attempted defiance 
of the Divine Law.] For he that said, Do not 
commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if 
thou dost not commit adultery but killest, thou 
art become a transgressor of the law. So speak 
ye and so do, as men that are to be judged by 


152 SONS OF GOD 





a law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy 
to him that showed no mercy: mercy glorieth 
against judgment.”—James 2:1-13. 


Neither God nor the Law is a respecter of persons. God 
does not care—to use man’s phraseology—one way or the other, 
whether we wear rings of gold or whether our clothing be of 
coarse or fine material; these things belong to the personality 
and, if honestly secured, are man’s right. God looks for the 
man, that which is of his kingdom, and he looks into the in- 
terior of man to see what is hidden there. 

A man may be poor in this world’s goods; if he entertains 
angelic guests—clean thoughts, exalted desires—and tries to do 
good works; if his efforts are directed along the avenue indi- 
cated to him by his birth on the earth plane; if he is engaged 
in transmuting the gross personality into the individuality and 
the consciousness of his Immortality;—then this man is ac- 
ceptable to God and protected by the Law. Though a man 
may be possessed of much wealth honestly gained, be decked 
with jewels and wear the most fashionable apparel; though his 
intellect be mighty and he not guilty of judging any or of ex- 
ploiting any of God’s children, yet if his thoughts be solely of 
the world and without a care as to his Divine inheritance, that 
man is not within the Law. 

Much gold, precious jewels and fine raiment are not evil 
in themselves, nor are they condemned either by God or the 
Divine Law. It is only when the effort to obtain these things 
usurps the time and the thought which belong to the sphere 
of Divine Action that they come under the condemnation of the 
Law and belong to the sphere of destruction. 


The rich man whose wealth is honestly gained has no less 





SONS OF GOD B53 





a chance to enter the kingdom of heaven than has the poor man. 
Being poor is in no wise a pass to heavenly favors, as it may 
easily cause one to be envious of the possessions of another 
and, to be envious even of the worldly goods of the dishonestly 
rich, is to break one—and therefore all—of the commandments. 
Each man, irrespective of his accumulations, must employ his 
talents (his knowledge, faculties and possessions) in the services 
of his God (the development of his own Soul and in serving 
others), and according as he does this, so shall it be unto him. 


“Except your righteousness shall exceed the 
righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye 
shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of 
heaven.”—Matt. 5:20. 


Of what does the righteousness of the Scribes and Phari- 
sees consist? The Scribes and Pharisees were devoted adherents 
of the synagogues and were faithful in their attendance at the 
services. They dressed well, they glorified the personality, they 
upheld the moral, written law. But believing that this was all 
that was necessary, they made no effort to spiritualize the Law, 
to bring it into manifestation through its application to the 
Divine Spark within themselves and thereby attain Conscious- 
ness of the Soul. 


These were the men of old; they knew nothing of God nor 
of the Soul, because the personality, belonging to the earth 
plane, cannot recognize that which is of God. The men of the 
present day who are like the Scribes and the Pharisees are also 
denying the kingdom of God. Instead of serving God with 
words and fine phrases and faithful attendance upon wordy 
services, man must serve God in his thoughts, desires and acts, 
and also in helpfulness to the less fortunate—practical com- 


154 SONS OF GOD 





passion being the highest form of prayer. Instead of fine 
clothing and golden trinkets, man must clothe himself with 
clean linen (cleanliness of person), kindly deeds and godly acts 
and through these build the temple not made with hands. In- 
stead of glorifying the personality, man must change, transmute, 
refine the personality into the Individuality. Man must study, 
comprehend and apply the Divine Law and through the con- 
scious, deliberate and sane application of the spirit of the prin- 
ciples involved, he shall gain Consciousness of Soul, Illumina- 
tion of the Individuality and thus become the Son of God— 
the son of man glorified (raised in God’s glory). 


THE CHURCH 
OF ILLUMINATION 


A Statement of Its History, Object, 
Cardinal Doctrines and 


Religious Concepts 


REV. R. SWINBURNE CLYMER, M.D. 
DIRECTOR-GENERAL 


INTERNATIONAL HEADQUARTERS 
BEVERLY HALL 
QUAKERTOWN, PA., U.S. A. 


THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION 


HISTORY AND OBJECT 


Very early in the present century it became apparent 
to students of religion and philosophy, as it did to the officiat- 
ing members of the various religious denominations, that many 
church members, while still remaining faithful to the church, 
were no longer satisfied by the acceptance and confession of 
a faith and the interpretation of the written word of the 
Bible, but were desirous of a spiritual, philosophic teaching 
that would become personal to the individual. 


Failing to find such a personal philosophic instruction 
and guidance within the Church, an uncounted number 
sought spiritual enlightenment elsewhere. Many of them became 
affiliated with the new cults and isms which were then rapidly 
coming into existence. As a result, church members in large 
numbers severed their connections with the church, to the great 
loss of the church and the ultimate dissatisfaction to them- 
selves. While many of them found a philosophy to their liking, 
they also became aware of a great lack and naturally placed the 
blame upon both the church they had left and the cult or ism 
with which they had become associated. This resulted in un- 
told thousands becoming either agnostics or atheists, condemn- 
ing both the church and the philosophic societies and taking 
an attitude inimical to all religious inculcations and organiza- 


tions, communistic in spirit and action. 





158 SONS OF GOD 





At this time, R. Swinburne Clymer, a graduate of medi- 
cine and ordained to the ministry, who had written and pub- 
lished numerous works on religious and philosophic subjects 
which had run into many editions and become favorably 
known throughout the world, saw the need of the people and 
became seriously concerned with the plight of the ever-in- 
creasing number leaving the church, absorbing foreign doc- 
trines and finally believing neither in God, nor having faith in 
man. Being fully convinced in man’s inherent goodness and 
conversant with the doctrine of man’s threefold nature—the 
philosophic doctrine of the transmutation of the evil in man 
into spiritual enlightenment and the Light of the Soul, he 
conceived the idea of giving to the seeking mass a treatise 
on this vastly important subject, a teaching outlining the Phi- 
losophy of spiritual transmutation to those already in the 
church, without taking them away from the church or in any 
way weakening their connection with the church of their 
choice. 


As a result of this reasoning, in 1908 he wrote and issued 
his book: The Son of Man. This work found immediate ac- 
ceptance, edition followed edition, and within a very short 
time there became apparent a consistent demand for an organ- 
ization, form and creed free, to which all might belong in 
order to receive its teachings and services without in any way 
interfering with their church connections. 

This resulted in the establishment of THE CHurcH oF 
ILLUMINATION on a basis of mutual help and spiritual enlight- 
enment. It is estimated that within a period of twelve years 
no less than one million individuals subscribed to the spiritual- 


SONS OF GOD 159 





philosophic teachings inculcated in this first text. In no in- 
stance was there proselyting nor the weakening of the member- 
ship of established churches. 


From the very beginning THE CHuRCH oF ILLUMINATION 
refused to solicit converts, or the subscribing, within its own 
organizatoin, to either creed or dogma. It frowned on the 
formation or organization of new physical churches, believing 
that there were a sufficient number of churches already estab- 
lished to take care of the people, and only when the demand 
became too insistent was the establishment of a church per- 
mitted. THE CHURCH oF ILLUMINATION has ordained a num- 
ber of men to the ministry so that the members in various parts 
of the country might, if they desired, have the services usually 
rendered by men of the cloth. 


Its membership is a membership-at-large. All men and 
women of whatever denomination, who believe in and seek a 
philosophical-spiritual interpretation of religion and the appli- 
cation of such an inculcation to their own personal needs and 
for the development of their inherent forces, energies and po- 
tentialities, may apply for instruction, guidance and services 
without in any way interfering with their membership in, or 
duties to, the church to which they already belong. As a mat- 
ter of fact and record, THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION frowns 
upon the severing of membership in any church so long as that 
church can be of service to the member. 


THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION has been steadily at work 
with the idea that ultimately the various churches would merge 
for the benefit of all religion as well as of all mankind. 


That there is a tendency of closer relationship among 





160 SONS OF GOD 


the various creeds is plainly evident. Catholic, Jew and 
Protestant are on friendly terms and cooperating with each 
other for the benefit of all religion. 


In some foreign countries where the very structure of 
religion is threatened with extinction, all denominations are 
fighting a common battle, each recognizing the right of the 
other, and most important of all, shedding the cloak of intoler- 
ance, ill-will and antagonism toward each other. 


Where formerly the members of an individual creed re- 
viled other denominations as being utterly in the wrong, there 
is recognition now that each has a rightful place and is render- 
ing service in accordance with its own best understanding of 
the spiritual requirements of its membership. 


THE CHuRCH oF ILLUMINATION looks forward with con- 
fidence to a constantly increasing feeling of good will and 
religious tolerance among the various creeds, so that some day 
in the not too-distant future the dream of unification can be 
realized and one all-embracing religion taught to all the peoples 
of all the earth. 


The membership of THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION is 
derived from those who are members in other churches and 
that vast number who have left churches prior to 1909 and 
since, and have been debris floating on a sea of unbelief and 
uncertainty. 


FUNDAMENTAL TENETS 


Not all men are free born. 
There is no equality among men. 

Men are born into environments, circumstances and con- 
ditions which either restrict or enhance their activities and 
possibilities. On the one hand are those born into environ- 
ments of vice, squalor, weakness, disease and crime, all of 
which restrict and circumvent their every activity from the 
very beginning of their days. On the contrary, there are those 
born in surroundings of wealth, well-being, freedom from 
weakness and disease, good repute and special opportunities. 


Grave injustice appears to be the arbiter of man’s fate 
at the very beginning of his existence, handing out favors on 
the one hand and condemnation on the other. Nevertheless, 
history and experience, lo, these thousands of years, have 
shown this to be in appearance only, and that though men are 
not equally born, ALL HAVE EQUAL OPPORTUNITY TO 
MAKE OF THEMSELVES WHATEVER THEY WILL. Prac- 
tically all of the great men of the past ages were lowly born 
and have risen as the result of awakening their inherent forces, 
energies and potentialities, the awakening in itself, in many 
instances, having been the direct result of the mental agony 
caused by their lowly birth and a recognition of the needs of 
others like themselves whereas their more fortunate brethren 
were satisfied with things as they were and their consequent 





162 SONS OF GOD 


lack of effort resulted in retrogression rather than further eleva- 
tion in their station of life. 


Therefore THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION maintains that 
all men, though not born either free or equal, have equal oppor- 
tunity which, accepted and taken advantage of, will lead them 
to the height of attainment on ail planes of being, bring them 
in turn strength and self-reliance, health and well-being, peace 
of mind which brings greater happiness than honors and riches, 
and, above all, helpfulness to their fellow men, which is salva- 
tion for themselves and for those who follow their example. 


We believe in the Brotherhood of Man, not as a state into 
which man is born, but as a direct result of his own effort, his 
individual achievement in following the precepts of ‘“‘serve ye 
one another.” 

We believe that the aim and end of man on earth is the 
establishment of a Brotherhood which is conscious of neither 
creed, color nor race, and in which social standing will be based 
on honor and be neither more nor less than the incentive for 
all of lesser degree to put forth every effort to attain. 


We exalt the belief in the Fatherhood of God, in the sense 
that He is the creative energy underlying all activity, and the 
Over-Soul of al] men; that he is the Operating Law; that He 
is eternal justice unswayable by either man’s passion or his 
appeal; that He exists today as He did in the ageless past and 
that all men are rewarded or condemned according to their 
own deeds; that ali men, however low, are given opportunity 
upon opportunity to free themselves from evil of every de- 
scription and are able to work out their own salvation in fear 
and trembling, yet with love and awe, because of the eternal 


SONS OF GOD 163 





justice which gave them being and under which they exist and 
have their being. 


We accept it as a fact and a cardinal principle in the 
advancement of the race, that all who are free-minded, not 
wholly steeped in selfishness, unbigoted and lacking in prej- 
udice, will willingly cooperate with each other and recognize 
such cooperation as the emancipator of the human family from 
oppression, suppression and unhealthy and abnormal repres- 
sion as well as from all forms of depressing influences in the 
form of undesirable conditions which now hold humanity in 
its stifling grip. 


CARDINAL DOCTRINES 


Man is ushered into the world as a threefold being; of 
body, mind and spirit. As such, he is only at the beginning 
of his career; he is incomplete and unbalanced. Within him, 
however, there are forces, energies and potentialities which, if 
developed and brought into manifestation, will make of him a 
fourfold being, of body, mind, spirit and Soul. 


Man’s ultimate is not to be merely a moving, laboring, 
suffering slave, driven hither and yon at the behests of those 
stronger than he, or of shrewder and craftier minds, but to 
awaken all the forces within himself, to develop all his potenti- 
alities, and to direct his energies into every constructive ave- 
nue of his activity and thus become more than animal-man— 
i. €., a son of God and a co-worker with God. 

The real object of man’s life on earth is primarily his self- 
improvement and his own ultimate perfection. This perfecting 
process depends upon the attainment of unity within himself, 





164 SONS OF GOD 





a harmonizing between his physical and spiritual forces; the 
unity of the human with the Divine nature, which is the essence 
and, in a spiritual sense, the NEW BIRTH. This perfection, 
or unity, becomes a state of the Soul, a degree of being, a 
sensing and feeling rather than a mere belief. This condition 
or state of being is possible only through the development of 
the divine nature of man from within himself and is the result 
of a process by which whatever is evil and unworthy is trans- 
muted, 7. e., changed or sublimated into the higher or spiritual 
entity—it is a becoming; the change from the purely animal- 
human to the human-Divine. 


The second object of man’s life on earth is to lead other 
men via the same path so that ultimately all men shall have 
developed and brought into manifestation and activity this 
same nature and thus will God’s church or universal Brother- 
hood become an established fact. 


The Cardinal doctrine of THE CHuRcH oF ILLUMINATION 
is not a confession of a faith or the acceptance of a creed. It 
is a Law which teaches that man’s real life, because it continues 
in an endless circle beyond the grave, begins by “‘an Invocation to 
God,” with a certain heavenly intention, drawn from the bot- 
tom of a sincere heart and conscience seeking purity from all 
selfish ambition, hypocrisy, envy, and all other vices which 
have any affinity with these; as arrogance, pride, love of lux- 
ury, petulancy, oppression of those lesser than the self, and 
other like evils, all of which are to be eradicated from the heart 
by substituting worthier motives. When a man then desires 
to prostrate himself before the throne of grace, for obtaining 
health, gaining strength, wisdom and power, freedom from 


SONS OF GOD 165 





oppression and exploitation, he may do so with a conscience 
free from unprofitable weeds, that his body may be trans- 
muted into a holy temple of God, and be purged from all 
uncleanness, for God will not be mocked (cannot by man be 
deceived), as worldly men think, pleasing and flattering them- 
selves by their folly, which they mistakenly take for wisdom. 

THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION does not teach a faith 
or a creed. It teaches a method for the accomplishment of a 


purpose. 


PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY 


THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION accepts in a literal sense 
and teaches as an ever-present fact the Law of Personal Re- 
sponsibility and maintains that herein is the means for the 
establishment of absolute justice between individuals and 
nations. 

It teaches that every human being is personally responsi- 
ble for his every act and that in no way can he free himself, 
nor be freed, except by the payment of the debt created by the 
act itself. It freely concedes that prayer is an essential in 
religious devotion, but that the prayer in itself, however sin- 
cere, is not in itself sufficient for the cleansing process and free- 
dom from the result of sin or wrongdoing, but that in addition 
thereto, the evil-doer must make restitution to the person 
wronged, or that being impossible or impractical, to some other 
unfortunate, but whatever the problem, the debt must be paid. 

The Church further maintains that if this tenet be 
accepted as a fact and applied in the daily affairs of life, then 
injustice and inhumanity must cease, since each individual 


166 SONS OF GOD 





will ultimately recognize that anything gained at the expense 
and to the injustice of another, is not a profit, but an indebt- 
edness which must ultimately be repaid with heavy interest 
and is therefore an actual loss. 

This doctrine was accepted as a fact and taught as a 
fundamental by the Master of Galilee when he said: “As ye 
sow, so shall ye reap,” and in a harsher sense by the ancient 
Hebrews in their “eye for an eye” decree. 


THE FATHERHOOD OF GOD AND PUNISHMENT 


THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION teaches the Fatherhood 
of God without respect to person or race and that God is 
just to all men and, through His laws, punishes the unjust. It 
inculcates a God of love, free from hatred, malice, revenge, 
free from the desire to see any of His creatures suffer even 
though they be evil. It exalts the doctrine that God, as such, 
does NOT punish any of His creatures but that He, in the 
beginning of time, established a Law of Absolute, Unchange- 
able justice, and that through the operation of this Law the 
REaction of the act itself brings about the punishment. The 
Law of Justice is the counterpart of the Law of Personal Re- 
sponsibility. When men fully realize this and recognize that 
every evil act will set into motion an unchangeable law which 
will bring about retribution, they will cease to do evil and 
accept God as truly a God of Love, but a Love founded upon 


Justice. 
RELIGIOUS CONCEPTS 


Truth is forever the same. Divine Laws have not changed 





SONS OF GOD 167 


since the beginning of time, nor have their application to the 
actions of men. The world of thought advances and with new 
thoughts, ideas, and ideals, come new actions which require a 
new understanding and a new governing or interpretation of the 
laws as they apply to the new conditions. 

Each outgoing cycle requires a laying aside of its cloak 
so that the incoming cycle may be “clothed upon” with a new 
garment better suited to its immediate needs. The texture, 

esign and coloring of the cloak of thought are determined by 
the particular emphasis that a given age employs in the inter- 
pretation of truth as it relates to the action and welfare of 
men. For the human race to be enriched by all the varied 
aspects that truth and its realization may assume, it is necessary 
for the cloak of interpretation to be donned and doffed again 
and again from time to time, in accordance with the law of 
progress and greater need. 


Service is the key to the highest attainment in life. By 
a deliberate transmutation of the gross into the finer; by a 
conscious realization of the spirit of the Law; by a practical 
application of the ideal of love and sympathy unto all men; 
by a masterly direction of an exalted Will; by a faith that 
consciously operates in harmony with the Divine Will; by the 
constant influence of a thought-atmosphere characterized by 
the qualities of kindness, compassion and justice; by the Ilumi- 
nation of the individual Soul so that it radiates and diffuses its 
own light of understanding and its own warmth of love with 
impartial tenderness on friend and foe—by, and through these 
qualities does man attain his highest estate in a world beset 
by sorrows and misery, heedlessness and cruelty, and become a 


168 SONS OF GOD 





shining light to those yet in darkness and unable to help 
themselves. 

That it is possible and necessary for man to understand 
the aim and end of life in order that he may intelligently obey 
the Law and live the life in harmony with it is becoming a 
settled conviction among the sincere seekers of truth in all 
walks of life. 

That the Immortalization of the Soul in the individual 
is attainable here and now is a fundamental tenent of THE 
CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION and must be attained in part 
through understanding and service to others. 

Immortalization, however, is not thought of as something 
that is thrust upon all alike, regardless of their desire or active 
seeking—it is not an inevitable factor of existence, but is the 
result of awakening to the realization that when the Master of 
Galilee spoke of men becoming the Sons of God, he meant just 
that. 

In each human being there is a Spark, a germ of the 
Divine Nature or OverSoul. This spark is the potential 
Christos, i. e., the means to the individualization of the Soul 
and is then become a “light that lighteth all the world of man’s 
consciousness.” When man attains the consciousness of this 
light within his own being, and recognizes and obeys the 
“still small voice,” he has reached a state of being bordering 
on the Illumination of the Soul, a state of being from which 
the church takes its name, and is well on the path toward 
*Immortalization. 

This Divine Spark in each individual can, by conscious 
effort, be developed into a center of that Living Fire of which 


SONS OF GOD 169 
feed aE! a La has ie aa ac TS Te Si a a 


the Master of Galilee spoke so much. Man in foto is a nucleus 
of Light, a Temple or Church for the living, radiating Christ. 
Man is the architect of that great Temple of Solomon, a spiritual 
structure wherein the spiritual sun shall constantly shine. The 
purified and exalted love dwelling within his heart, and then 
enlightened understanding of his Soul is the means whereby 
he saves himself and lifts other men to higher estates. 


Man is made in the image of his God. He is a material- 
ized reflection of the Divine, possessing in part the powers 
and the attributes of the Infinite. In different personalities 
these divine qualities are in various degrees of development. 
In one person they may be latent and concealed beneath the 
crust of a wholly selfish personality, but unless gradually 
destroyed by the fires of persistent, Soul-destroying acts, they 
none the less remain a potentiality awaiting the unfoldment 
process of growth. In another person they may be in the 
incipient stage of a nucleus of goodness. In this environment 
they are indicated by an active, wholesome conscience, al- 
though the life itself may be entangled painfully and ham- 
pered by a thoroughly selfish personality. In yet another person 
these qualities may have become a dynamic, vital expression 
of individualized life so that the Soul is conscious of its insepar- 
able connection with the Infinite. These potentialities may be 
condensed into a center of radiation, into a perfect pyramidial 
flame, “the light of the world,” that warms the desire-nature 
with love and illumines the understanding with wisdom, a 
guide that all may profitably follow. In this state, the Divine 
qualities of love, kindness, wisdom, compassion and _helpful- 
ness unconsciously radiate the blessings of their inherent good- 


170 SONS OF GOD 


ness upon all who come within the sphere of its influence. 


Creation is the manifestation of the Divine Mind or 
OverSoul. All things having been created by God, are in them- 
selves good, but man, through the exercise of his free will, 
because of other than constructive application of the Law, has 
perverted many of the things inherently good. Through this 
action he has brought evil upon himself and his fellow man, 
just as he has misdirected potentialities naturally blessed and 
brought upon himself and others the penalty which primitive 


man rightly named “curses.” 


In his four-fold nature of body, mind, spirit and soul, 
man is an epitome of the universe. Potentially he is the 
Divine Creature in miniature, termed the microcosm and, 
consequently, the “little God” and the “little world.” Man is 
the climax, the culmination of forces which for ages have 
been seeking expression. How to develop these forces, bring 
them into activity, and then express them harmoniously is 
the problem before him, and to this purpose THE CHURCH OF 
ILLUMINATION has dedicated itself. 


To use his forces constructively as intended by the 
Divine plan, and only in the service and to the welfare of 
mankind, is the deal that he must be led to comprehend and 
then choose for himself. To engage his potentialities and use 
his powers in obedience to the Creative Law will result in the 
elevation of his entire being. Conversely, to pervert his forces 
and divert these potentialities or possibilities into channels of 
error and sin, 7. €., wrong use and destructive action, brings 
about loss and ultimate destruction. 

God could not possibly place a higher mark of honor on 





SONS OF GOD 171 





man than to give him the right of choice, the power of decision 
and the ability to direct his Will and his forces in the execu- 
tion of plans in accordance with his own decrees. Every power 
is, in itself, good, although it admits of a two-fold expression: 
positive and negative; good or evil. Every law of man’s nature 
is good in itself, but also permits of a two-fold functioning: 
constructively or destructively. The application which one 
makes of a force or a power alone determines its effect as well 
as its reaction. Every virtue is offset by a possible correspond- 
ing vice. 

The results of man’s acts depend entirely on their direc- 
tion or tendency. Every force, every energy and every potenti- 
ality placed within man’s reach, is intended to fulfill beneficent 
ends. Every organ of the body, every function of the mind, 
is intended to serve a noble purpose. When directed in har- 
mony with the Divine Law, the result must be, and IS good. 
It is therefore essential that every human being be taught the 
Law of Individual Constructiveness as well as Individual Re- 
sponsibility; that he, personally is, and must be, the arbiter 


of his own faith. 
CHURCHES 


THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION differs from the orthodox 
religious creed in several very important aspects. 

First—it is not concerned with the erection of new 
church structures, believing as it does, that there are at pres- 
ent already more churches than is necessary to adequately 
accommodate every individual in America. 

Second—THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION seeks to con- 





bi2 SONS OF GOD 





tact religious people who desire a philosophical teaching which 
will harmonize religious truths and concepts, based on princi- 
ples which replace blind faith with living truths. 

Third—Tue CuurcH oF ILLUMINATION seeks men and 
women who have become dissatisfied with orthodox religion 
and who often class themselves as agnostics or atheists. To 
these people the CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION offers a basis for 
re-establishing their religious faith in an all-embracing, over- 
shadowing, all-wise, just and law-enforcing God. 

Fourth—TuHE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION believes that 
ultimately there will be a merger of all religious teachings, and 
as an organization, this church teaches that with minor differ- 
ences all churches have more or less the same goal—to enable 
the individual to place himself in a most favorable relation- 
ship to his Creator and God. 


While THe CuHuRCH oF ILLUMINATION is not interested 
in sponsoring or promoting the erection of church buildings, 
permission to organize local congregations is granted when- 
ever the local membership requests such permission, based on 
a great many of these members having no other church affilia- 


tion. 
MEMBERS 


The membership of THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION is 
properly classed as a “membership at large.” The individual 
members come in contact one with the other at local club 
activities and study circles, and with the National Headquarters 
only at such times when some special service is sought. 


In many of the larger cities there are regular study 


SONS OF GOD 173 





groups which meet once a week. Affiliation with such a group 
is not obligatory, as the individual member has ample oppor- 
tunity to receive the proper réligious and philosophic teachings 
through books and private lessons which can be obtained 
through the church headquarters. 


CHURCH EDIFICES 


THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION is disinclined to main- 
tain church edifices and does so only in two instances. All 
other groups or congregations meet in rented quarters. 


PARSONAGES 


As in the case of church edifices, but two parsonages are 
maintained. 


EXPENDITURES 


There are no expenditures as such. Where there are local 
congregations or study groups, the local members defray what 
little expense there may be for the rental of a weekly meeting 
hall. 


THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION believes in literally 
accepting the inculcations of the Master of Galilee: “Let not 
thy right hand know what thy left doeth.” Each member of 
the church is instructed to be an individual good samaritan 
in the guise of a good neighbor. ‘Serve ye one-another,”’ is 
one of the fundamental principles inculcated in all of the 
teachings. This harmonizes with the instructions of the Master 
Jesus: to help those in need; to minister to the sick; to en- 
courage the hopeless; to cheer the sorrowful; to feed the 
hungry; to be a brother to all mankind, and to do these things 





174 SONS OF GOD 





in the spirit of the church; without vanity, self-glory, self- 
praise, self-righteousness or pride. The individual member is 
a representative of the church as a whole and in his own right. 
He is instructed to do that which the church as a whole would 
do under any condition confronting him. 


SUNDAY SCHOOL 


THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION does not as a body estab- 
lish Sunday schools, but it does encourage meetings for Biblical 
and philosophical study. 


These study classes are not designated as Sunday schools, 
but as centers of instruction, or group meetings, where mem- 
bers meet for the purpose of securing a clear understanding of 
religious and spiritual precepts, an opportunity for self-exami- 
nation, while at the same time extending friendly helpfulness 
to those less fortunate. 


As THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION teaches advanced 
philosophy and the Sacred sciences, its membership is composed 
almost entirely of adults. 


SALARIES 


No salaries are paid to those Ordained by THE CHuRcH 
oF ILLUMINATION. Wherever possible, men for Ordination 
and as lay teachers are selected from among those following 
one of the many professions for a livelihood. They are there- 
fore free to render unselfish service as an Ordained minister of 
the Church, or as a specially appointed teacher, and do this 
work on a humanitarian basis without a stipulated salary. 


Ordained ministers and lay teachers are, however, per- 


SONS OF GOD 175 


mitted to accept free-will offerings on the basis of fair exchange. 
Quite often such free-will offerings are for the purpose of de- 
fraying hall rent and other expenses connected with the study 
meetings conducted weekly, or at some other definitely agreed 
upon interval. 


MEMBERSHIP 


In accordance with the original tenets of the Church 
when first instituted, no membership rolls are maintained, 
except the names of those receiving instructions for the Priest- 
hood, or such others desiring instructions in the higher Spiritual 
Laws and Sacred Spiritual truths. 


The total membership is well over one million adherents. 


ORGANIZATION 


THe CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION is managed by a govern- 
ing body consisting of the Director-General and a Council of 
Seven members. All the affairs of the church come before this 
body twice yearly; during its June and October Convocations. 


There is no proselyting for members in any form. There 
is no collection of dues or fees, no confession of faith, nor 
formal subscription to any creed. The contact with the public 
is through its various publications, through which is taught 
the philosophy which is the foundation of the Church. 

The Church membership contacts the supreme body 
mostly through correspondence, as well as during the Con- 
claves held throughout the year in various large cities in the 


United States, and even in some of the foreign countries. 


The membership enrollment follows the study of its texts, 


176 SONS OF GOD 


either through the numerous study groups, or through books 
and other publications furnished through the publishing de- 
partment of the church, or through the books being circulated 
by many of the prominent public libraries throughout the 
country. 


MISSIONARY WORK 


THE CHURCH oF ILLUMINATION does not promote organ- 
ized missionary work. Every adherent to the Church is an 
individual, self-appointed missionary who spreads the teach- 
ings and the mission of the church whenever he meets those 
who are in need of either the teachings or the service of the 
Church. 


EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOR ORDINATION 


The Ordained ministers of the church are selected from 
among its membership on the basis of fitness, willingness to 
render service without compensation, and voluntarily sub- 
scribing to the following Cardinal Doctrines of the Church: 


First—That man, though lowly born as the son of 
man, has within himself the forces, energies and potenti- 
alities which, recognized, fully developed, and brought 
into manifestation, will not only lead him into full man- 
hood, freedom and honor among men, but will, through 
the process of transmutation and elevation, bring him 
into sonship with the All-Father—a true son of God. 


Second—Aspirants for the Priesthood must take the 
vow that all confidences reposed in them by confessants 
and communicants will be held sacredly inviolate. 


Third—That at no time will they proselyte for mem- 


SONS OF GOD 177 


bers in other denominations. 


Fourth—That their natural and God-given energies 
and faculties will be employed in helping their less fortu- 
nate fellow men, whenever such help is requested or 
desired. 


Fifth—That all of the services and sacraments will 
be dispensed strictly in accordance with the teachings of 
THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION. 


Sixth—That candidates for the Priesthood must ex- 
press a willingness to thoroughly prepare themselves to 
properly conduct and carry on the work required by any 
of the offices of the Church. 

The course of study for the Priesthood requires three 
years. During this time prescribed texts must be studied, ex- 
aminations undergone and the personal training completed to 
the entire satisfaction of those under whose direction the 
training is conducted. 


If, at the end of the three-year period, the aspirant is 
still willing to take upon himself the vow of obedience and 
secrecy, and life-long loyal devotion to the church, the Ordina- 
tion will proceed. 


All Ordinations are revocable for cause. Any ordained 
member of the church found guilty of conduct unbecoming to 
his office, or of betraying the secret of the least of those con- 
fiding in him, or of making use of his position and authority 
for any unworthy or selfish purpose, will immediately have his 
ordination rescinded. 

The Divine Law underlies all true growth, advancement 
and progress. Both in its positive and negative aspects, this 
Law is exacting and relentless and neither man nor God can 





178 SONS OF GOD 





free the individual from the reaction of an attempt to defy, 
evade, abuse or nullify the Law. Obedience to the Law is 
constructive and upbuilding and tends toward the spiritualiz- 
ing of the Soul, reaching as its natural goal the plane of Soul 
Iilumination or Individual Consciousness. Failure to comply 
with the conditions imposed by the Divine Law is destructive 
and disintegrating in its effects, leading as it does toward 
diffusion and dissolution; these effects are the opposite of 
growth, 7. e., self-destruction and spiritual suicide. 


The positive aspect and activity of the Divine Law is 
known as the process of salvation or regeneration; the nega- 
tive aspect and activity brings about degeneration or loss of 
the spiritual entity. The doctrine of salvation or regeneration 
receives the most practical attention in the teachings of THE 
CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION. 


Approximately fifteen millions of people in America are 
waiting for this message, will you not help us reach these and 
thereby carry to them renewed hope? By doing so you will 
help both them and yourself. 


Address: Department of Registration 
THE CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION, 

Beverly Hall, 
Quakertown, Pa. 


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